


The Clue of the Broken Blade

by Aurora_Mandeville



Series: Red Randall [1]
Category: Clue | Cluedo (Board Game), Red Randall - Fandom
Genre: Clue Discover the Secrets, Colors, Gen, Mr. Hughes - Freeform, OCs - Freeform, Red randall - Freeform, This is a hardy boys title, Well - Freeform, and I've reworked it into a Clue book, in case anyone is wondering, more like a Red Randall book, the clue books are going to be a different series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-22
Updated: 2021-01-13
Packaged: 2021-02-28 19:49:14
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 20
Words: 52,604
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23252734
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aurora_Mandeville/pseuds/Aurora_Mandeville
Series: Red Randall [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1671877
Kudos: 1





	1. Meeting the Staff

Robert Randall, nicknamed Red because of his fiery hair, walked down the sidewalk with determination and excitement. He was heading towards a stately mansion not far from Hollywood, California where his new employer lived. He was going to get to be a pilot for one of the wealthiest men in America! Sure, it wasn’t exactly what Red had in mind at first, but the more he thought about it, the more he liked it. His employer would probably be a little more lenient in allowing vacations, pay raises, and world travel.   
Red’s musings came to a halt as he stopped in front of a large, iron-wrought gate. The house on the other side of it seemed to command attention and respect, but it was beautiful. He let out a breath as he pushed the button to request entry. He became perplexed when no one answered. He pushed the button again, longer this time. A voice finally answered it after a minute.   
“What do you want?”   
“Um, I’m Robert Randall, Mr. Hughes’s new pilot?”   
“Oh, yes, very well, come in.” The gate opened up and Red walked in, pulling his rolling luggage behind him. The driveway was a little longer than what he had originally thought it would be. But he was really surprised when an Indian came rushing out the door to meet him halfway. There was a slight pause as the two stared at each other for a moment, blinking in surprise.   
“You, ah, um, work for Mr. Hughes?” said the guy in English haltingly and with a rather strong Indian accent.   
Red blinked. Was it his imagination, or did that accent seem fake? “Um, yes. Would you like to see my papers?”   
“Please.” Red pulled out the documents that he and Mr. Hughes had signed before Mr. Hughes returned home and handed them to the Indian. He glanced over the paperwork and gave a slight nod. “Very good.” He handed the papers back to Red.   
Red let out a huff. “Good, now is that really your accent or are you putting on a show?”   
The Indian blinked and said in perfect English with a Californian accent, “Is that your natural hair color, or did you dye it?”   
Red grinned. “It's natural. Yes, there are such people as red-headed Asians. It's mainly found in a mostly secluded Mongolian tribe though.”   
“Mostly secluded? So how come you're from Hawaii?”   
“Uh, I don't want to sound rude or anything, but I did tell Mr. Hughes I would report to him at three sharp.”   
“Oh right! Sorry man, and here I am being rude staring at you.” He held out his hand. “I'm Aadav Swarna, but everyone calls me Sunny.”   
Red shook his hand. “Robert Randall, but everyone calls me Red, and I think you can see why.”   
Sunny chuckled. “Yeah, so I can. Come on, let me take you to your room.” Sunny grabbed a couple of suitcases and led Red into the house. “So, it's a little ways to your room. Can you tell me how a red-headed Mongolian with an American name ended up in Hawaii?”   
Red smiled as the two walked through a long hall towards a grand staircase. “Of course! My great-grandfather was a pilot in World War Two. One day he got caught in a storm and went way off course. He flew for a while and crashed in Mongolia. A red-headed tribe found him and nursed him back to health. That's where he met my great-grandmother. He left the tribe to continue fighting in the war, but once it was over, he went back and settled down with them. A few years later, inspired by stories of America and Hawaii in particular, my grandparents moved to Hawaii after getting married. My family's been there since.”   
“Wow,” said Sunny, his eyes and mouth wide. “Man, what a story! And now you're on the mainland working for Mr. Hughes!”   
Red chuckled. “Yup. So what's your story?”  
Sunny shrugged. “You mean besides my grandparents moving here back in the 60’s to try and get into the movie business, and my family's been in America ever since? Not quite as intriguing as your story.”   
Red chuckled. “Maybe, but I really want to know why you were pretending to be an immigrant?”   
Sunny grinned. “Oh, I like pranking people. A few people have asked over the years what part of India I’m from and why I don't speak with an accent. I guess some people can't wrap their heads around the fact that there are Indians who have been here for a while.” He gave Red a deadpan face. “And not Native Americans.”   
Red chuckled. “What can you say? Some people just get stuck in their own world and don't ever want to come out.”   
“Ain't that the truth.” Sunny paused in front of a door and opened it. “Well, here's our apartment, if you will.” Red gasped when he entered. There was a little living room adjacent to a kitchenette and two doors at the far end of the room with one on the left and another on the right. Sunny pointed to the door on the left. “That’s our bathroom.” He turned his finger to point at the next door, one at the back of the room. “That’s Sterling’s room.” He pointed to the door next to it. “And that’s your room.” Red walked towards the door on the far right. It opened to a comfortable-sized bedroom with clouds covering the back wall and airplanes sitting atop the dresser.   
“Wow,” said Red softly, “does everyone who works for Mr. Hughes have this?”   
Sunny chuckled. “Well yeah, kinda.”   
Red eyed him. “Kinda.”   
“Well yeah, kinda, the twins share one, and then Lloyd and I share that room,” said Sunny as he pointed to the fourth door.   
Red laughed. “Oh, I see. Who are the twins and what do they do?”   
“Why don't we set your luggage down and I’ll introduce you to everyone on our way to report to Mr. Hughes?”   
Red smiled. “That would be great!”   
Sunny led Red out of the room and the two walked more briskly down the hall. The first person they met was an older gentleman in a suit. He looked to be in his late thirties or early forties, reddish-brown hair that had a few strands of grey here and there, and light brown eyes. “Hiya Rusty! This here is . . .”  
“Robert Randall, also known as Red,” said Rusty drolly as he held out his hand.   
Red shook it. “And you’re the security guard who let me in.”   
Rusty raised an eyebrow, impressed. “Well, I’m actually the butler, I’m in charge of the gate as well as the door. But I will say you are the first to recognize me from the loudspeaker.”   
Red blinked. “Really? But it's so obvious!”   
Rusty smirked. “Apparently not, it would seem. But allow me to introduce myself properly. I am Rusty Northrope, and I am in charge of the household along with Miss Stephanie Moss, the head chef. If you do not see Mr. Hughes, you come to see me.”   
“Well, I was on my way to see him,” began Red.  
“I know, he is expecting you. But he's still in his fencing practice, so I shall get you acquainted with the house until he’s finished. He informed me that he shall be a bit late.”   
“But that was what I was doing,” said Sunny.  
“You can help,” said Rusty with finality. Sunny shot Red a sheepish grin and shrugged before the two followed Rusty down the stairs. Rusty led them to the dining room. Red’s mouth dropped at how long the two tables were. He counted the chairs. There were twenty-eight total! “The dining room can be used by all, but we must be ready to serve Mr. Hughes and his guests, if he has any, by six-thirty sharp. You might have to help some nights if he has a large crowd.”   
“Yeah,” said Red in awe. Red finally tore his gaze from the tables and followed Rusty to a door that led outside. He gasped when he saw stairs going down into a little garden area where a grill and three tables with chairs were set up.   
“Sometimes Mr. Hughes will host a garden party, and here is where we will serve them.”   
“Why, I didn’t notice that when I came in!” exclaimed Red, realizing that the garden was in the front lawn, practically hidden under the patio.   
Rusty smiled. “Precisely. Mr. Hughes values his privacy.” He turned and went back into the house, Red following quickly behind. Rusty closed the door and led them to the doorway on the other side of the dining room. “And here is the kitchen.” There were three women working in the kitchen and two men around Red’s age bringing in groceries from a side door. Rusty cleared his throat, which made them pause and look at the newcomers. Red noticed that the two younger women were twins, but one had auburn hair while the other had strawberry blonde. The third woman looked to be in her late thirties with light brown hair, hazel-green eyes, and a freckled face. The first young man was blond with grey eyes and a nice tan to his skin while the other young man had brown hair, green eyes, and seemed to be sizing up Red. “Everyone, this is Robert Randall, Mr. Hughes’s new pilot. Robert, may I introduce Miss Stephanie Moss, the head of household and head chef, Sienna and Saffron Richards, Sterling Zielinski, the head gardener, and . . .”   
The second young man cleared his throat and bowed. “Lord McGorman, at your service,” he said in a thick British accent.  
Sunny and the twins groaned. “Really?” mumbled Sunny.   
Red glanced between them and thought a moment before he started chuckling. “Oh, oh I see . . . you mean that’s Lloyd?”   
Sunny nodded as he rolled his eyes. “Yup.”   
Lloyd straightened up and gasped. “No fair, you already told him!” He spoke with a New York accent which did sound much more natural than his attempt at a British accent, even though he was pretty good.   
Sunny scoffed and waved his hand. “I didn’t have to. He already figured out I was putting on a show with my Indian accent. I just had to make sure he knew your first name was Lloyd and he figured out the rest.”   
Red smirked. “Besides, it’s not every day you see a lord helping the kitchen staff or wearing overalls.”  
Lloyd’s mouth dropped for a second before he burst out laughing. “Alright, alright, I guess you got me there. But I will prank you one day.”   
The twins laughed as they walked towards Lloyd and stood on either side of him. “Lloyd, when will you ever learn? The majority of those pranks backfire on you,” said the lighter-haired twin.   
“He looks too smart for some of your pranks anyway,” said the darker-haired twin.   
“Um, which one is Saffron and which one is Sienna?” Red whispered to Sunny.   
Sunny chuckled as he whispered back. “Think about the colors, and therein lies your answer.” Red’s eyebrow went up. Really? That would mean Sienna was the auburn-haired twin while Saffron was the strawberry-blonde.   
“Nice hair, though, that color looks good on you,” said Saffron with a slight flirtatious smile.   
Red smiled back. “Thanks, it’s natural.” At that, everyone’s mouths dropped before they surrounded Red.   
“What, really?” said the twins in unison.  
“How is that even possible?” asked Stephanie.   
“What kind of weird genetics is this?” said Lloyd.   
Red laughed. “Just the genetics of a red-headed Mongolian.”   
“Red-headed Mongolian?” the women exclaimed in unison.   
“You’re kidding?” exclaimed Saffron.   
“Who knew Asians could have red hair?” said Stephanie.   
Red shrugged. “One of humanity’s greatest secrets, I suppose. This Mongolian tribe has managed to keep itself pretty secret from the rest of the world. I guess you wouldn’t know for sure until you actually looked for them.”   
“Wow,” said Sienna, “guess you learn something new every day.”   
“But Robert Randall isn’t a Mongolian name,” said another voice. Red was surprised to see that Sterling had snuck up on them quietly.   
Sunny grinned and nudged Red. “Tell them about your great-grandpa.”   
Red sighed and launched into the tale about his great-grandparents meeting which led to his own family ending up in Hawaii. He decided to give the full tale since he had a larger crowd. If Rusty or Stephanie thought he shouldn’t be taking up so much time out of their day, they didn’t say anything to stop him. They listened with as much rapture as the rest. Lloyd only paused the tale once to give Red a high-five when he heard that Red’s great-grandfather was Irish. When he finished the tale, he noticed that two more women had joined them. Rusty introduced him to the final two members of the staff, Hazel Corcoran and Aurelia Peach. Hazel had sandy-blonde hair and hazel eyes while Aurelia had golden blonde hair and brown eyes. Red noticed the looks that Sterling gave Aurelia, it was obvious the guy liked her a lot, but he seemed particularly shy.   
“How much of Red’s tale did you hear?” Sunny asked Hazel and Aurelia.   
“Oh, almost all of it,” said Aurelia with a slight Southern twang. She shot Red a warm smile. “Enough to know that red-headed Asians do exist and that Red is from Hawaii.”   
“And that’s he’s part Irish,” said Hazel before high-fiving Lloyd.   
Sunny chuckled. “So, basically all the important parts.” He glanced at Red. “Guess you don’t have to repeat your story to everyone now.”   
Red grinned. “What a relief.”   
Rusty cleared his throat. They glanced at him, he was looking at his watch. “And now that the story is over, we should head to see Mr. Hughes. I wanted to finish the tour of the house, but I’m sure Mr. Hughes would like to partake in showing off his mansion to his new pilot.” He glanced at Red. “Shall we be off?”   
Red let out a breath. “Yes.” The staff parted to let Red and Rusty back through the kitchen to the dining room. With each step, Red became more and more nervous. Sure, he had already met Mr. Hughes when he traveled to Hawaii to meet with Red personally, but now that he was in his house and surrounded by his staff, Red was starting to feel a little out of place. New home, new job, maybe even new friends, sure it was exciting, but nerve-wracking as well. Red let out another breath as Rusty led him to the other side of the house and through a long hallway that doubled as an art display. The first door they passed was closed and seemed wrapped in shadows, the second was a large doorway leading to what looked like a ballroom, and the third door, the one where Rusty paused, was partially opened and sounds of swordplay could be heard faintly. Rusty glanced at his watch with a questioning look on his face.   
“He should have been finished by now,” he mumbled. He pounded on the door before swinging it open and walking in. Red let out a shaky breath, this was it, this was the moment he fully realized things had changed and that he had taken his first steps into a new chapter in his life. He took a deep breath before following Rusty into the room.


	2. The Eccentric Mr. Hughes

Red followed Rusty into a room full of exercise equipment with large windows on two walls letting in a lot of light. Near one set of windows were several pads. On one of those pads were two men decked out in padded suits and fencing. Red watched the two men practically dance while their swords sang at every meeting. It thrilled him. Maybe he could ask Mr. Hughes if he could learn to fence as well.   
“Wonderful, Signor Hughes!” exclaimed the fencing instructor as the two finally stopped and sat down on a bench. They peeled off their masks. One mask revealed the blonde hair and blue eyes of Reginald Hughes, wealthy entrepreneur. The other mask revealed a dark-haired, dark-eyed Italian who was beaming with pride at his student. “You have made excellent progress!”   
Reginald smiled. “With a great many thanks to you, Signor Russo! With a fencing instructor like you, even the most unbalanced man can learn how to fence with the grace of a swan!”   
Signor Russo waved at the praise, despite his reddening face. “No, Signor, you are simply a natural! It's an honor to have you as my student!”   
Rusty cleared his throat. The two men glanced up at him. Then Mr. Hughes saw Red. He jumped up with the excitement of a school boy at the bell ringing in the holidays and grasped Red's hands with fervor. “Red, you're here! How wonderful! So sorry to have kept you waiting, I was insistent on another round with my instructor. Here, let me introduce you. Signor Russo, this is Red Randall, my pilot. Red, this is Signor Ettore Russo, my fencing instructor.”   
The two shook hands. Red noticed Signor Russo shot Mr. Hughes an uncertain look. “Your pilot?”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “Only the best.”   
Red could feel the heat rising in his face. “Uh, Mr. Hughes, I don't have the experience that someone who's been flying for years have had, but I plan on doing my best.”   
Signor Russo raised an eyebrow. “Mr. Hughes always picks the very best, you can be sure of that.” He shot Mr. Hughes a reproachful look. “Except when it comes to friends.”   
Mr. Hughes grinned sheepishly. “I was young, Signor!”   
“You're still young,” Signor Russo quickly returned.   
“Well, you’ve said so yourself, I’m a fast learner.”   
“Yes, though I still wonder why you haven't stopped being friends with those low-lives.”   
Mr. Hughes shrugged. “A sense of gratitude, perhaps? It was through those friends that I met Delilah.”   
“Ah, yes, the one good thing they’ve done for you, and they're probably regretting it.”   
Red blinked in confusion. “Um, what do you mean by that?”   
Rusty cleared his throat. “I was going to show Mr. Randall around the house, Mr. Hughes. He’s already met the staff.”   
Mr. Hughes clapped his hands. “Wonderful! I would like to join you. Signor Russo, would you like to join us, or do you need to leave?”   
Signor Russo nodded, giving a sly, suspicious glance at Red. Red met his gaze with a questioning look. “I would like to join you. My meeting is tomorrow, so I have the rest of today to myself.”   
“Fantastic! And may I convince you to include having dinner here?”   
Signor Russo chuckled. “Yes, Reginald, I’ll stay for dinner.”   
“Wonderful! Rusty, please lead the way.” Rusty bowed, turned, and led the way out of the room.   
“If you couldn't tell,” Rusty told Red, “but that was the exercise room. Mr. Hughes does all of his training in there.”   
Red glanced at Mr. Hughes. “I could tell.”   
Mr. Hughes grinned. “Yes, it's quite convenient, to be sure. But it does make life easier, and cleaning for that matter.”   
Rusty smiled with pride. “That's quite right, sir, you are always trying to make our lives a little easier.”  
Mr. Hughes shrugged. “I think my employees should be allowed some free time too, to pursue whatever they desire.”   
“Oh, speaking of,” began Red, but he was interrupted by Signor Russo.  
“Are we getting a tour of the house, or a laundry list of Mr. Hughes’ great qualities?” He didn't seem to mind though as he was grinning impishly.   
Rusty chuckled. “I don't see why we can't have both.”   
“I’d say, righto Rusty, but I don't think the laundry list is quite that necessary. Come on, let's finish this up real quick. We do need to let Steph know that we’ll have an extra place at the table tonight.”   
“Oh she won't mind serving Signor Russo, it's just the other guests,” quipped Rusty. “But yes, let's continue. This hall is the art museum portion of the house.” He turned and spread out his arms real quick. “Any piece of art that fascinates Mr. Hughes goes here. A perfect place as not only is this happening across from the exercise room, but also the ballroom.” Rusty turned and indicated the doorway next to the exercise room. Red nodded, so he was right in that assumption.   
He pointed at the closed door. “What's behind that door?”   
“My office, and the security room,” said Rusty, walking briskly past it. “No one but myself, Miss Moss, and Mr. Hughes are allowed in there.”   
Red nodded. “Duly noted.” Rusty seemed to smile upon him with something akin to relief and pride. Was he slowly earning Rusty's trust?  
They continued the tour. The next room was a game room. There were a few animal heads hung up that Mr. Hughes said his grandfather hunted. But there was plenty of room for three board games and a game of charades to be going at once. The next room was what Mr. Hughes liked to call a lounge room, it had a miniature bar, plenty of sitting space, a few ash trays, and a little circular side room full of windows. One window showed a little picturesque train set that seemed to be operational. The lounge room also opened to a small hallway that had the laundry room at the end of it. Red was surprised to find three sets of washers and dryers, but Rusty and Mr. Hughes explained it was for the best, especially if they had guests spending several nights at the mansion. They went back out to the main hall, and Rusty gave a quick nod to the back door situated directly behind the grand staircase, saying they would go back to that when they were finished. Red was shown the luxurious bathroom, a good sized library with a giant fireplace, and finally the living room.   
“This is just the main floor,” said Mr. Hughes. “The second floor has all the bedrooms and the rest of the bathrooms. But you don't need to know all that just yet. Come on Rusty, let's show him what’s outside.”   
Rusty's mouth twitched with what looked like an attempt to cover up a grin. “Yes sir.” He led the three outside, and Red oohed and aahed over the gardens. He made a point of talking to Sterling about it the next time he saw him. But then he saw it, and his face lit up like a kid’s at Christmas. There, on a homemade runway in front of a small hanger, stood an Embraer Legacy 600. Red wanted to run towards it and check it out immediately, but a safety concern made him pause.   
“Um, Mr. Hughes, why isn’t this fantastic airplane at an airport?”   
Mr. Hughes grinned. “Because I’ve received special permission from the airport to do so, provided that you make sure all requirements were met upon your arrival. Come on, let’s get you started.”   
Red grinned at him and walked almost with a bounce towards the plane. Mr. Hughes directed him to the hanger wherein the requirements laid. Red made sure the hanger was up to date and had all the necessary equipment before making his way to the plane to look it over and checked in with the airport.   
“Well thanks Red,” said the airport operator after Red had introduced himself and gave her all the info she needed, “sounds like everything’s in the clear. And glad to have you on the air, and in the air.”   
Red chuckled. “No problem Mrs. Tracy. Thank you for being on the air and going through the procedures with me.”   
“Not a problem. Just remember to check in every time you prepare to take off and have landed.”   
“Yes ma’am, I will.”   
“Roger that, over and out.”   
“Over and out.” Red left the cockpit and joined Mr. Hughes and Signor Russo who were being served drinks and snacks by Rusty. Mr. Hughes raised a glass as Red sat down in one of the passenger seats.   
“Everything checks out?”   
“Yes sir it does. Um, might we go for a test run?”   
“Oh come now, you’ve only just arrived. You’ve taken care of making sure we were meeting regulations, I do think that’s enough for one day.”   
Rusty glanced at his watch. “Besides, Mr. Hughes should be getting ready to meet his guests.”   
Signor Russo groaned. “You mean to tell me they’re coming over tonight?”   
Mr. Hughes shot an apologetic grin at Signor Russo. “Si Signor, scusi! But today is Monday, it’s sort of a tradition. Besides, not all of them are coming.”   
Signor Russo sighed. “So, which of the usual suspects will be here tonight?”   
Mr. Hughes chuckled nervously. “Well, Jack, Jacob, Victor, and Kasandra, definitely. Eleanor, Diane, and the Meadow-Brooks have other plans.”   
Signor Russo let out a huff. “Well, this should be mostly tame, I suppose, Jack and Kasandra can keep each other entertained.” He shot Red a grave look. “But whatever you do, young man, never let Jacob Green know any of your secrets. He and Eleanor Peacock are notorious for using anything they can find on you against you. All of them really, but those two are like sharks when it comes to secrets.”   
Red blinked, but he nodded. He knew the name of Eleanor Peacock, she was the daughter of a Californian senator and was running herself in the next Californian election. Who were the other guests then? Jacob Green he knew he had never heard of, but he had a feeling he would learn more about him.   
“Perhaps we should all head back to the house and prepare for dinner,” suggested Rusty. “Your guests will no doubt be arriving soon.”   
“Quite right,” said Mr. Hughes as he got up. “Oh, and Rusty? Have Sunny be ready with the car, I want him to take Signor Russo home when he’s ready.” He grinned at Signor Russo. “Wouldn’t want him to miss such an important meeting tomorrow.”   
Signor Russo stood up and gave a bow. “My sincerest thanks, Signor Hughes, I really do appreciate it. But as for dinner . . .”   
“Oh come now! Consider it a celebration of your good luck!” said Mr. Hughes as he led the group out of the plane and back to the house.   
“I wouldn’t quite celebrate my good luck, as you put it, just yet. I would still have to find my grandfather’s sword hilt to find his will. And that would probably be after I return from Italy.”   
“Well, I still would like to celebrate. My new pilot has also just arrived, so you’ll have to pardon me for being in such a celebratory mood.”   
Signor Russo chuckled. “Quite true, I suppose.” He shot Red a sad smile. “But I do worry about you thrusting him into your dangerous life like this, and without warning.”   
Red glanced between Mr. Hughes and Signor Russo. “Dangerous? What do you mean by dangerous?”   
“You haven’t told him about the numerous threats upon your life?”   
“Oh, um, he did,” began Red.   
“But you played them down, didn’t you, Reginald?” asked Signor Russo. Red was surprised by the sternness in his voice and the sudden use of Mr. Hughes’s first name. It was almost like Signor Russo was speaking to Mr. Hughes like he was a teenager.   
Mr. Hughes shrugged. “They really aren’t that bad . . .”   
“How long are you going to play them down until someone you care about gets hurt?” continued Signor Russo. “How long? Would Delilah have to get harmed in order for you to take them seriously?”   
Mr. Hughes paused in their walk and turned to his fencing master with fire in his eyes. “I think whoever is threatening me would know better than to lay a hand on Delilah.”   
“Oh I’m sure they would know what laying a hand on Delilah would mean to you. Mr. Green made absolutely sure the whole world knows.” Signor Russo sighed. “Reginald, I don’t like arguing with you. You do know I’m just trying to look out for you?”   
Mr. Hughes sighed as the fire in his eyes died down. “Yes, Ettore, I know, I know far too well. You are one of the few people who truly does care about my well-being. But you know how the saying goes, keep your friends close and your enemies even closer. I opened this can of worms, it’s up to me to get every worm back in the can.”   
Signore Russo patted his shoulder. “Just know that we’re here to help, alright? You shouldn’t have to do this yourself.”   
“Even if it means running the risk of getting the people I care about hurt?”   
“Hey, some of us can take care of ourselves better than others.”   
“Oh really?” began Mr. Hughes, but Rusty stepped forward with a groan and began pushing him towards the house.   
“OK you two, you’re going to be at this all night if I let you. Dinner’s not going to eat itself, and that meeting’s not going to happen if you don’t get moving. Now move.” He glanced between the two. “Please,” he added.   
Mr. Hughes chuckled. “Alright, alright, I’m going!” His good mood seemed to return and the four entered the house. Red told Sunny all about it while the four guys were changing into polo shirts and slacks.   
Sunny laughed. “Oh yeah, that’s just how Signor Russo is. He’s felt like he has to act like Mr. Hughes’s father ever since they first met. And yes, that little argument happens every single time he joins us for dinner.”   
“Like every single time,” said Lloyd from the bathroom as he combed his hair. “Without fail. The guy wants Mr. Hughes to stop hanging out with these guys, but he also wants him to make his own decisions as well. It’s obviously pretty hard. Though, with the way these folks act, you would think Mr. Hughes would have ended their friendship a long time ago.”  
“But he’s grateful to them for introducing him to Delilah?” asked Red.   
Lloyd stuck his head out of the bathroom and nodded at the same time that Sunny nodded. “Yup.” At that moment a gong rang out. “That’s our cue. Come on!” They dashed out of their room and down the stairs as Rusty was opening the door for the first of the guests. Red stopped and stared as the first two came in the door. He knew those people! One was Jack Mustard, a well-known sports announcer, and the other was Kasandra Scarlet, the rising actress and femme fatale!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> real quick note, starting March 29 and going to April 2, I'm going to have this ebook (https://www.amazon.com/Spring-Easter-Collection-Short-Stories-ebook/dp/B0716G5WGZ/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=aurora+mandeville&qid=1585429080&sr=8-5) be free for those who are interested. If you do get it, many thanks and I hope you enjoy it!!


	3. Test Flight

It took a moment before Sunny could snap Red out of his stupor. Red followed Sunny to the kitchen in a daze. Mr. Hughes knew these famous people? He only saw Jack Mustard and Kasandra Scarlet before Sunny practically dragged him away to the kitchen, but he was itching to know who Victor was and maybe find out a little bit more about Jacob Green. The warning Signor Russo gave about him was ringing in his brain still, even while he helped the others in the kitchen. The women were cooking while the guys were rushing around finding ingredients and washing dishes. Red was pretty much assigned to the dishes as he didn't know where anything was. Finally, it was time to serve. Red, Sunny, and the twins were tapped to bring out the dishes. Red had to concentrate really hard on getting the platter to the table, the aroma of the green bean casserole was making his mouth water. Sunny was behind him with a sizzling, crispy goose, Sienna had a bowl of buttery mashed potatoes, and Saffron carried in the fresh salad.   
Signor Russo shot Mr. Hughes a glance as the four set down their platters. “Seems an awful lot like an English Christmas dinner.”   
Mr. Hughes winked. “Well, Steph insisted on saving the special Italian dinner for tomorrow.”   
Signor Russo blinked before he chuckled. “You're rather persuasive without trying! I’ll be here for that.”   
“Great! Steph would like a real Italian’s opinion on the flavors. She's supposedly taking an old traditional recipe and making it all her own.”   
“Mm, I’m sure it will be heavenly,” said Scarlet.   
“Oh, no doubt about that,” said Mr. Hughes with a chuckle. “She just wants to be sure it tastes Italian.”  
Signor Russo laughed. “You're certainly asking the right fellow!”   
“Oh, you're new here.” Red blinked as everyone's attention was drawn towards him. He glanced at the man who spoke. He had dark skin, a bald head, dark, scrutinizing eyes, and a sly smile. “Is this the pilot you were looking for?”   
“Um, yes, yes he is. Everyone, I would like you to meet Red Randall. Red, I’m sure you know of Kasandra Scarlet and Jack Mustard.” Red gave a weak nod. “Well, that's Jacob Green, and the gentleman sitting next to him is Victor Plum.” Red's mouth dropped. He had heard of Victor Plum, game tech extraordinaire.   
Plum gave him a smug smile. “So you have heard of me, huh?” He turned to Green, the smile growing as he adjusted his glasses. “It seems more people know about me than you.”   
Green raised an eyebrow. “Whoever said I wanted to be recognized?” Those scrutinizing eyes of eyes turned back to Red. “In my line of business, being unknown is best. Besides, I never was in it for the fame.” His eyes went back to Plum. “Unlike you,” he added with a chill to his voice.  
Plum hissed. “No, of course not. How could I forget? You're just in it for the money, easy money especially.”   
“Well of course, dear fellow, the easier the better. I don't want to work myself too hard. It's not good for my health.”   
“Uh-huh,” scoffed Plum.   
“Oh would you two knock it off?” said Scarlet with a slight whine.   
Green glanced at Red again. “I sure would like to know more about you.”   
“Of course you would,” mumbled Signor Russo under his breath.   
Green glanced at him, an amused glint in his eyes. “Are you suggesting that I have some sinister motive, Signor Russo?”   
“I sure wouldn't expect anything else from you.”   
Mr. Hughes sighed as he rose from the table and began cutting up the goose. “Now, now, everyone please be civil. You’re at my table and I don’t want your petty arguments to dampen the mood. Can we please just eat and talk of happier topics?”   
“Yes, let’s,” said Scarlet. She glanced between Red and Mr. Hughes. “How about we set a date for your new pilot to take us on a spin in your airplane, Reginald? That should be loads of fun.”   
Mustard grinned. “That’s a great idea! I’m all in for that!” He glanced at Red. “I expect to be wowed, young man.”   
“W-well, um, actually . . .”   
“I think a test flight would be a good idea,” said reginald. He glanced at Mustard. “But no risky maneuvers of the sort, just a simple test run.” He turned to Signor Russo. “Would you like to join us as well?”   
“That all depends on when it is,” said Signor Russo with a shrug.   
“I'm thinking tomorrow would be fine. The afternoon, perhaps?”   
Signor Russo thought a moment before giving a slow nod. “Yes, yes that could work. I don't expect my meeting to go on for that long.”   
The other guests looked at Signor Russo in surprise. “A meeting?” they chorused.   
“What kind of a meeting?” asked Scarlet, leaning on the table.   
“Do spill, Signor Russo,” said Green. “This must be extremely important.”   
Signor Russo eyed him. “It is, but I don't want to spill, as you so eloquently put it, until I know the outcome of this meeting. If I tell anyone, my own expectations will rise and I don't want to be disappointed.”   
Plum sat back with a sigh. “As much fun as it would be to know, I completely understand, dear fellow. Receiving bad news when you're expecting good news can be quite the downer.” He shook his head as if he understood all too well.   
Signor Russo cleared his throat. “Well, um, thank you, Signor Plum, for understanding.”   
“Well then, that's all settled.” Mr. Hughes glanced at Red with a smile. “Red, we shall have you take us out on a spin tomorrow afternoon.”   
All that night and all the next morning, Red was more anxious than he had ever been in his life.   
“What if I forget the controls? What if I forget to check in with the airport? What if . . .”  
Sunny grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him. “Come on man, knock it off! You’ll do great! Mr. Hughes picked you because he observed you to be the best. Come on, you’ve been flying for, what, five years now? This should be a piece of cake!”   
“Y-you’re not nervous?”   
Sunny waved his hand. “Nah, I’ve already been through all that when I first started working for Mr. Hughes.”   
“Then you'll know that this anxiety isn't going away until I’m in the air.”   
Sunny sighed. “Then let's hurry it up and get you in the air!”   
The afternoon came quicker than Red wanted, but it was almost time to take off when Signor Russo came to the yard, grinning from ear to ear. But Red noticed there was a look of concern about his eyes.   
Mr. Hughes greeted him. “I take it the meeting went well?”   
“Um, yeah, yeah it did. But there's a catch.” Mr. Hughes raised an eyebrow. “I’ll tell you about it later, maybe you can help.”   
Mr. Hughes patted his back. “Anything to help, Signor. But we mustn’t keep the others waiting.” He turned to Red. “Almost done?”   
Red nodded. “I'm going to do a quick double check and then get on the plane.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “Sounds good.” He and Signor Russo walked on to the plane while Red did a final check-up of the plane. He wanted to be extra sure nothing went wrong. When he was satisfied with his check, he dashed up the steps and closed the door. He looked in on the passengers where the twins were instructing them on airplane safety, the two wearing stewardess outfits.   
“Sorry to interrupt, but is everyone ready?”   
The twins gave him thumbs up. “We’re ready to roll!” said Sienna excitedly.   
“And awaiting orders, Captain,” said Saffron with a wink and a salute.   
Red smiled slightly. “Continue with the safety lesson and be ready to strap in when my voice comes over the speaker.”   
Both girls saluted him. “Aye aye Captain!”   
Red grinned before walking to the cockpit. He sat down in the pilot’s seat and let out a shaky breath. He glanced at the copilot seat. Sunny sat there, grinning. “You got this man! Just stay focused on what you need to do, and everything will go smoothly!”   
Red began working with the control panel. “I certainly hope so.” He went through the routine; checking gas, equipment, and all the gauges. He then called the airport, giving them their planned course. Mr. Hughes had told him to head to his cabin in the forest near Mount Shasta. They would spend the night there and come back in the morning. As soon as Red was given the all clear, he started the engines. A minute later, they had taken off! Now Red was really in his element, and his anxiety subsided.   
Sunny patted his shoulder. “You see? Everything's going well!”   
Red grinned at him with relief. “Yeah, so far. But I think I’ll be fine now.”   
“Great!” Sunny unbuckled himself. “I'm going to get something to drink. Want anything?”   
“A water for now, thanks.”   
“You got it, Captain!” Sunny left the cockpit with a salute. The rest of the trip went very smoothly, so smoothly that Signor Russo complimented him when they had landed.   
“Fabuloso!” Signor Russo said as Red was opening the airstair. “That was the smoothest ride I’ve ever had!” He looked at Mr. Hughes. “No wonder why you hired him!”   
Mr. Hughes beamed. “Precisely. I only pick the best, after all.”   
“Well I was hoping for something a little more exciting than that,” mumbled Mustard. Mr. Hughes glanced at him. Mustard shrugged. “I guess it was good.”   
Mr. Hughes rolled his eyes. “You guess it was good.”   
“Oh, it was certainly smooth enough,” said Scarlet as the group finally alighted. “But I'm dying to know exactly what Signor Russo's meeting was all about and how it went.”   
Signor Russo growled. “That is my own personal business, Miss Scarlet, and none of your concern.”   
Green chuckled. “Don't worry, Kasandra, I can get that info for you, if it will convince you to live.”   
Scarlet laughed. “Oh, you're such a dear, Jacob!” She shot him a sly, side-eyed glance. “When you want to be.”   
“Well of course. I am very curious myself as to what that meeting was about.”   
As the group walked into the cabin, Red shot Sunny a curious glance as they gathered the luggage from the plane. “How in the world did these people ever become friends?”   
Sunny sighed. “Mr. Hughes’ money, that's what. It's the only thing they care about, you know. If it weren't for that, they probably would have avoided each other like the plague.”   
Red nodded slowly. “I see. And the more I see of them, the less I’m dazzled by them.”   
“Not all celebrities are like them, and definitely not everyone Mr. Hughes knows, but those six, Mr. Mustard, Miss Scarlet, Mrs. Peacock, Mrs. White, Mr. Plum, and Mr. Green, well . . .” Sunny sighed and shook his head. “Those six mean trouble. Especially those six. The Meadow-Brooks and Dame Judith Rose, Miss Delilah’s mother, aren’t that much more trustworthy, but they are less likely to try something because, well, obviously Mr. Hughes is engaged to Miss Delilah and Dame Judith wouldn’t want to ruin that, and Mr. Meadow-Brooks is Mr. Hughes’ personal doctor. He’s really only trustworthy when it comes to medical information, I suppose, I hope.”   
Red glanced at the group walking into the cabin as he and Sunny began walking that way with the luggage. “Again, why does Mr. Hughes put up with them?”   
Sunny sighed yet again. “If there’s one thing you’re going to learn, it’s that Mr. Hughes really is eccentric. There’s another reason why he chose you, why he chose all of us.” Red glanced at him with curiosity. The two paused at the door, Red waiting for Sunny’s explanation. “You ever noticed our names have something in common?”   
Red raised an eyebrow. “No,” he said slowly, “not really.”   
“Of course, how could you know, you don’t know about the last names.” Sunny let out a breath. “Each of our names, whether it’s our first name, last name, or nickname, has something to do with color.”   
Red blinked. “Say what?”   
“Corcoran is Irish for purple, Swarna means good color, there’s the twins, and of course, you.”   
Red’s mouth began to drop. He thought he finally understood. “He likes surrounding himself with people whose names deal with color?”   
Sunny nodded rapidly. “Oh yes, so much so that he excludes most people from his inner circle unless they have a color name, that’s why those six are still around, because their names deal with colors.”   
Red blinked. “Really? I wouldn’t exactly think of Peacock as pertaining to a color.”   
“Peacock green or peacock blue?”   
“Oh, oh right.” He grinned sheepishly. “Guess I’m not as observant as I thought.”   
Sunny patted his shoulder. “Oh, you’re still pretty observant, I wouldn’t have expected you to know what Corcoran or Swarna meant.”   
“And what does McGorman mean?”  
“Oh, son of the blue noble, or something like that.”   
“Oh, so that’s why Lloyd goes around pretending he’s a Lord.”   
Sunny grinned. “Yup, you guessed it.”   
“Guys!” The two jumped and glanced at the doorway. Sienna and Saffron were standing there, Saffron had her hands on her hips. “Come on, we’re not going to wait all night for you to get the luggage in! We still have dinner to fix!”   
“Oh alright,” said Sunny as the two dragged the luggage into the cabin. “I’ll tell you more later,” he whispered to Red. “Just know, you’re in for one crazy ride.” Red nodded before the two got to finishing up the chores. But Sunny was right in more than one way as they were about to find out.


	4. A Knife in the Dark

After the guys put away the luggage, they went to help the twins with dinner. But they only managed to get a few things done when the doorbell rang. They glanced at each other.   
“Now who in the world could that be?” asked Sienna.   
“Sunny, Red, could one of you please get that?” came Mr. Hughes’s voice from the living room. Sunny and Red glanced at each other, and both went to the front door. Red opened it. There stood two women Red recognized immediately, Eleanor Peacock and Diane White.   
“Why, Mrs. Peacock, Miss White, it’s . . . it’s so good to see you!” said Sunny.   
Mrs. Peacock seemed to look down on them and sniffed. “You don’t seem particularly pleased.”   
Sunny gave a quick bow. “Oh, I’m sorry Mrs. Peacock, we definitely are, it’s just, you took me by surprise! I had no idea you and Miss White were coming!”   
“Well, we’re here,” said White.   
“And who is . . . this?” Peacock asked, indicating Red. He did not like the tone of voice she used for him. Heck, he didn’t like the tone of voice she had been using with Sunny, but he kept silent.   
“Mrs. Peacock, Miss White, my I introduce Robert Randall, Mr. Hughes’s new pilot?”   
“Oh, so this is the fellow he hired, go figure.” Peacock gave a slight wave of her hand. “But he can hire who he wants. Now, get my bags.” She walked off.   
“Well I am genuinely pleased to meet you,” said White, holding out her hand to Red.   
Red smiled and shook it. “And I’m pleased to meet you, Miss White. You were a child star, right?”   
White beamed. “You recognize me!”   
“Of course! My sisters really like you in the Adventures of Diana Dare. They have the whole series and they’ll binge watch it in the summer.”   
White clasped her hands. “Oh, to still have fans! And such young ones! Oh, such a joy! Would you like an autograph to send home?”   
“I-if that’s not too much trouble . . .”   
“Trouble? Oh, none at all! You’ve made my night, young man, it’s the least I could do! As a matter of fact.” White grabbed her bags while Sunny and Red grabbed Peacock’s and the three went up the stairs to the guest rooms, Red and White chatting away quite gaily about Hawaii. White quickly took out a photo of herself and signed it, handing it to Red before heading back down the stairs. Red folded it and put it in his back pocket so he could help Sunny get Peacock’s luggage in her room.   
“Well, you’ve entered into Miss White’s good graces. But I warn you, she’s no better than the rest of them and will do what she can to get what she wants, even if that means dragging you across the floor and stepping on you. I wouldn’t put it past any of them to commit murder.”   
Red let out a breath. “Does Mr. Hughes have any real friends besides Signor Russo and his girlfriend?”   
“And us, his servants? Only a handful, I’d say.”   
“And he can’t just find other people with colorful names?”   
Sunny grinned sheepishly. “They’re not that easy to find, believe it or not. At least, among the wealthy, that’s for sure.”   
Red deposited a suitcase by the bed. “Do you know exactly why Mr. Hughes has this odd . . . fascination?”   
Sunny shrugged. “I don’t, I don’t think anyone does know, except maybe Rusty. Rusty’s the closest to him, besides maybe Miss Delilah.”   
“He doesn’t have any family?” asked Red.   
Sunny thought for a moment. “I think he has an uncle, an aunt, and a few cousins, but we rarely see or hear of them. The whole family’s pretty wealthy, but they pretty much split some time ago. At least, that’s the rumor, Mr. Hughes is pretty secretive about his family, well, to be honest, Mr. Hughes is secretive about a lot of things.”   
Red pursed his lips. “So it would seem.”  
“What’s wrong?”   
Red shrugged. “Nothing, just thinking.” But he was wondering if he had accepted the position too quickly. Of course, it wasn’t like Mr. Hughes gave him that much time to decide either.   
“Thinking about what?”   
Red pursed his lips. Should he tell Sunny? He had only known the guy for a couple of days and really liked him. He let out a breath. “That, that maybe I was too quick in accepting Mr. Hughes’s offer.”   
Sunny patted his back. “Hey, we all did too.”   
Red’s eyes widened and blinked. “Wait, you too?”   
Sunny nodded. “Yes, all of us. We’re working for a guy who’s constantly in danger. But, I think you’re more off on the right foot here than the rest of us. Miss White won’t turn on you right away, so you are more likely to have her protection for a little while longer in comparison to us, who really didn’t impress any of them upon our arrival.” Sunny sighed. “They’re all looking for money and attention, really, some more than others. And I did say they’re all bound to kill for it, but since you’ve gotten on Miss White’s good side, they’re more likely to leave you alone.”   
Red pursed his lips. “I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.”   
“It’s a good thing for now. You can observe them and help out Mr. Hughes a lot better knowing they’re not breathing that hard down your back.” Sunny paused and grinned grimly. “Though, Mrs. Peacock is bound to be doing that no matter what. Everything has to be just so with her.”   
“That doesn’t make me feel any better.”   
Sunny grinned apologetically. “Sorry, but it is true. So, listen, just don’t worry too much about it, alright? They tend to leave us alone for the most part.” Sunny glanced at the clock. “Though, speaking of, we’d better get back to the twins, we’re going to serve supper soon.” The two dashed back down the stairs and into the kitchen. Sienna placed her hands on her hips. Sunny grinned at Red. “Our biggest concern should be her and Miss Moss.”   
Sienna raised an eyebrow. “Uh, yeah, we have work to do. Come on!” With the twins directing, the four got dinner on the table at seven, as Mr. Hughes had requested. Red was sent to inform Mr. Hughes and his guests that dinner was served. He entered the game room, chancing upon a strange scene. Mustard and Signor Russo were locked in a fencing duel. Mr. Hughes cheered on Signor Russo, while his guests cheered on Mustard. Red wasn’t sure if he should interrupt or not, he too was becoming engrossed in the battle. White noticed him and walked towards him.   
“This is so much fun, isn’t it?”   
Red looked at her. “Hello Miss White. What’s going on?”   
White nodded at the dueling pair. “Jack wanted to know what Signor Russo’s meeting was all about and the two agreed to a duel. If Jack wins, Signor Russo will tell us, but if Signor Russo wins, he won’t tell us and Jack will have to quit smoking for a month.”   
Red gasped. “Mr. Mustard smokes?”   
White nodded. “Oh yes! But only those of us in this house know, and now you, seeing as how he openly smokes around us.” White wrinkled her nose. “I might be cheering on Jack because I too want to know, but to be honest, I almost want Signor Russo to win as well, the smoking gets to me.”   
Red nodded. “I can understand.”   
White smiled at him. “You’re so sweet. I’m so happy Reginald hired you!”   
Red smiled back at her. Maybe White wanted money and attention like the rest of them, but he didn’t think she was really all that bad. Maybe it was a good thing he came here. “Why thank you Miss White, I am too. I got to meet you.”   
White beamed and opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by a shout. The two turned their heads, Mustard was on the ground, fuming, while Mr. Hughes stood in front of a panting Signor Russo.   
“He won, Jack, fair and square.”   
“He cheated, that’s what, he cheated, that slime!” shouted Mustard as Green and Plum helped him to his feet.   
“Well based on what I know of fencing, he did win,” said Scarlet.   
“Oh no one asked you, Kasandra!” shouted Mustard. Scarlet huffed, flipped her hair, and walked towards Signor Russo.   
“That was a good form you had there, Signor. Congratulations on your win, and as promised, we won’t press you any further on your personal business.”   
“Thank you, Miss Scarlet,” said Signor Russo, though he looked like he didn’t trust her.  
“He did not win, he cheated!”   
“You obviously know nothing about fencing or its rules,” said Signor Russo tersely.   
“Yes, a shame, really,” said Scarlet. “You were doing pretty well yourself, Jack, but you’ve always been more like a football player, barreling through obstacles until you get what you want.”   
“Yes, quite unlike you, you sweet talk your way through everything,” jeered Mustard.   
“Really, Jack, that was very improper,” said Peacock.   
“Oh, will you quit it, you old hag!”   
Peacock’s eyes widened and her nose flared. Mustard realized he overstepped his boundaries with her and began to back away. Red realized this was his chance and cleared his throat, getting everyone’s attention.   
“If you are done here,” he said in a tone that sounded stronger than he felt, “dinner has been served.” Everyone eyed each other before walking out of the room towards the dining room. They ate in a deafening silence while Red whispered to Sunny and the twins about the entire incident.   
“Oh man, this isn’t good,” whispered Saffron. “Mr. Mustard doesn’t like losing, not one bit. I have a very bad feeling about this.”   
“But what can he do?” asked Red. “Mr. Hughes himself said Signor Russo won fair and square, and Miss Scarlet sided with him!”   
“The fact that Miss Scarlet sided with them would really get under his skin,” said Saffron.   
“Oh, you don’t know this crowd as well as we do,” said Sunny at the same time. “You heard what Miss Scarlet said, and she’s right, Mr. Mustard will barrel through his obstacles until he gets what he wants.”   
“And she should know,” muttered Sienna.   
“Well, Mr. Hughes managed to get them into a good mood, I think it will be fine,” said Red, even though deep down he knew the other three were right, he could still sense an underlying tension between Mustard and Signor Russo even though they were laughing over a game Mr. Hughes had started.   
“Oh trust us,” said Sunny, “sooner or later, Mr. Mustard will strike at Signor Russo, and frankly, I’d rather it later so that we don’t have to worry too much about it here. We don’t have a doctor readily available, even though there is Dr. Kin in town, it would still take her thirty minutes to get here. Who knows what can happen in that time.” The twins nodded.   
Red sighed. “Alright, alright, I’ll see what I can do to help.”   
“What you can do to help right now is help me make sure all windows and the two doors are locked,” said Sunny.   
“Really?”   
Sunny nodded. “Really. Mr. Hughes likes having everything here ready to shut down around nine.”   
Red glanced at the clock. It was a little after eight. He turned to Sunny and huffed. “Fine, windows first?”   
“Always.” The two young men set about checking all the windows on the second floor and double-checking them before turning to the windows on the first floor. By the time they got to the billiards room, whatever game Mr. Hughes and his guests had been playing was being wrapped up. The two had walked in right as Mustard had finished speaking, and Scarlet burst out laughing. At that moment, Red felt a sense of peace. That was, in fact, the main reason why he did accept the job from Mr. Hughes, he had this sense of peace about it and took that to mean this was the right job for him. Then that sense of peace changed and it seemed to become more of a sense of stillness, which he would later come to find out was nothing more than the calm before the storm. But at that moment, everything was right with the world as they finished up the game and left the room to do a few final things before bed.   
Red got the task of locking the back door. He opened it and breathed in the mountain air. It was crisp and cooling now that night was falling. It felt good. He took another breath and smiled before closing the door and locking it. Since their chores were finished for the day, the servants went to bed before everyone else so they could get up early and serve breakfast. Red noticed that Sunny fell asleep almost as soon as he hit the pillow. But Red lied awake for a few more minutes, mulling over the day’s events. Only his second day, and things were going up and down, like a roller coaster. Red didn’t quite like the uncertainty, and yet, in a way, it thrilled him. Something unexpected could just be around the corner, just as something expected could be. It was certainly nice to meet Diane White, the star of his sisters’ favorite TV series. He closed his eyes and smiled, envisioning the look on their faces when they got the autograph. OK, yeah, this wasn’t so bad after all. He might have to watch his back a little more closely than he would in Hawaii, but his coworkers seemed to want to help with that, so he should be fine. And with that happy thought, he drifted off to sleep.   
It was around midnight when he woke up again, his throat feeling parched. He coughed as silently as he could into his sleeve so as not to wake up Sunny before grabbing his phone and using its light to make his way to the kitchen. He grabbed a bottle from the fridge and just about downed the whole thing in one gulp. He licked his lips when he finally stopped for a breath and coughed a little again. He walked into the hall with the bottle, wanting to take the bottle up the stairs with him, when he paused. His eyes widened as he glanced down the hall. The back door was wide open! He opened and closed his mouth a couple of times in surprise. But how could that be? He locked it! Didn’t he? He approached the door cautiously. He had locked the door, he knew he did, but it wasn’t like there was a special key or anything that was needed to lock it, so anyone could have gone out in the middle of the night for a walk if they wanted. He closed his mouth into a firm line. That was most likely the case, and whoever went out left the door open so that there was less of a chance of someone locking them out, whoever they were. Red let out a slow huff, he needed to go get them and bring them back in, didn’t he? Maybe he could get in someone else’s good graces if he promised not to say a word to Mr. Hughes about it. But as he stepped towards the door, an uneasy feeling came over him as thoughts of the duel flashed through his mind. That, coupled with Sunny’s words ringing in his ears, urged him onward. It might still be nothing more than a pleasant walk for one of the guests or even Mr. Hughes himself, but, one could never go wrong with taking the side of caution. Red walked briskly out into the night air, a soft breeze muffling his footsteps. His heart quickened, anyone could sneak up on him, or anyone else. He walked down the path, looking in all directions, but he couldn’t see anyone. How far had they walked? Were they on their way back? He hoped so as he shivered, he didn’t bring a jacket. But he kept walking, until he thought he heard something. He paused, he did hear something. He walked towards the sound. A lump came into his throat when he heard it again, it sounded like a moan. He quickened his steps, until he stopped abruptly in his tracks. Before him, on the path, layed a man. A moan escaped his lips. Red shook off the initial shock and rushed towards the figure. He turned it over, and found it was Signor Russo, covered in blood. Red began to panic. He began tearing bits of clothing off Signor Russo’s jacket to try and stop the bleeding. “H-help! Somebody help!” Red shouted at the top of his lungs.   
“Must . . . find . . .” Signor Russo coughed.   
“Signor Russo, it’s me, it’s Red. Who did this to you? Was it . . . was it Mr. Mustard?”   
“Must . . . find . . . Grandfather’s . . . hilt.”   
“What? Your grandfather’s hilt? Why do you have to find it? Signor Russo? Signor Russo?” Signor Russo’s eyes closed and his breathing slowed. “No, no, no, no, stay with me, Signor Russo, stay with me! Please!” Red turned back to the house. “Help!” He shouted at the top of his lungs again. “Help!”


	5. Flying Accusations

“Several gashes across his chest, a huge quantity of blood loss, and a slight concussion,” Dr. Kin told Mr. Hughes as they were leaving the guest room where Signor Russo laid, unconscious. Red, Sunny, and the twins were waiting outside the room. Dr. Kin looked at Red. “If you had waited any longer before you went out there, young man, I wouldn’t have been able to save him. He owes you his life.”   
Red sighed. “I just wish I had gotten there sooner.”   
Dr. Kin patted his shoulder. “So do we all, but that’s not our concern any longer. Right now, we have to get Mr. Russo back in full health.”   
“Is there anything else we can do to help him heal?” asked Mr. Hughes as the group began walking towards the staircase.   
“Just make sure he’s comfortable, he stays hydrated, and if he wakes up when I’m not here, that he doesn’t get out of bed. That might be the harder one.”   
Mr. Hughes chuckled. “Well, we’ll do our best.” They reached the bottom of the stairs and walked past the living room. Dr. Kin glanced into the room. A detective had come in as well and was asking the other guests questions. From what Red had gathered, this detective, Roy Bivens, fellow was a personal friend of Mr. Hughes as well as employed by him. Dr. Kin walked past the room, followed by Mr. Hughes and his household.   
“And get those six out of here,” said Dr. Kin softly when they reached the doorway. “I don’t care if you never find out who did this to him, I want those six out of the house while he’s healing. I’d rather not take any chances and have my patient dead by morning.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded, grimly. “I understand all too well. Once the detective has finished asking his questions, I want to ask a few of my own before I send them packing.”   
Dr. Kin nodded. “Fair enough. Just ask those questions, Reginald, and then send them home. You’re getting enough bad publicity on this already, don’t need any more.”   
Mr. Hughes sighed. “I’m not worried about the publicity, Ayaka, I just want my friend to get better, and if you think sending the others away will help, then I shall do that.”   
Dr. Kin nodded. “Thank you Reginald.” She shook hands with him. “You be safe yourselves.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “We will.”   
She glanced at Red. “And something tells me your new employee is going to turn out to be much more than a mere pilot.”   
Red blinked in surprise. “What?”   
Dr. Kin turned back to Mr. Hughes. “Just be careful, Roy might become a little jealous.”   
Mr. Hughes chuckled. “I highly doubt that, I think Roy might like working with Red.”  
Dr. Kin chuckled. “I certainly hope that will be the case. Anyway, I’ll be back before dinner to check up on him.”   
“Would you like to stay for dinner afterwards?”   
Dr. Kin shrugged. “Sure, why not, those six should hopefully be gone by then.”   
“They will be, I promise.”  
“Then I’ll see you for dinner.” Dr. Kin gave a slight bow and left.   
Mr. Hughes had bowed in return and closed the door behind her. Red saw his hand clench when he finally let go of the knob. “Now, let’s find out what those six might know.” Though his voice came out calm and even, Red could detect the underlying tone of anger. He led the way back to the living room. Roy Bivens seemed to be having a bit of a problem as everyone was talking over each other. “So who did it?” The room went silent as all eyes turned to Mr. Hughes. His eyebrows furrowed as he looked at each person. “Well, who did it?”   
“Well I certainly didn’t do it,” said Plum.   
“Knives are so improper,” said Peacock.   
“You know that’s not how I do things,” said Green.  
“I had no reason to do it,” said Scarlet.   
“I had no quarrel with Signor Russo,” said White.   
“Well I definitely didn’t do it,” said Mustard. “I wanted a rematch!”  
Mr. Hughes crossed his arms. “The servants were in bed by ten, I went to bed about ten-thirty. What about the rest of you?”   
“Oh, I was doing some research in the observatory for a new game until eleven-thirty,” said Plum.  
“I was doing a little light reading in the study until eleven-thirty as well,” said Scarlet with a flirty glance at Mr. Hughes. Mr. Hughes rolled his eyes. “I did see Victor go into his room.”   
“And I saw you go into yours.”   
“I left the billiards room about fifteen minutes before that,” said Peacock. She eyed Mustard. “I too was trying to get in some light reading, but Jack here was practicing his fencing so loudly that it was becoming rude and obnoxious.”   
Mustard crossed his arms. “And that was only after I told you to leave if you didn’t like how I was practicing and that this wasn’t your house, I didn’t have to follow your rules.” He turned to Mr. Hughes. “I stayed up till eleven-forty for some more practicing.” He curled his right hand into a fist and slammed it into his left palm. “I guess I can’t have that rematch now thanks to whoever attacked him.”   
“I was following you up the stairs,” said Green.   
“Oh yeah, you were,” said Mustard.   
“Where had you been?” asked Mr. Hughes.   
“Oh, I had been here, in the living room, catching up on some files. The study would have been more ideal, but it was already occupied,” said Green, shooting Scarlet a glance. “I finished around eleven-forty, and I followed Jack up the stairs. I went to bed immediately.”   
Mr. Hughes glanced at White. “Diane?”   
She let out a huff. “I, I think I was the last person to see Signor Russo before the attack.”   
“What?” exclaimed Sunny.   
White nodded. “I had been in the spa for a little while, getting some relaxation, before going into the kitchen for a little bedtime snack. Signor Russo 0was already there, getting some water. I congratulated him on his win against Jack and we did a bit of small talk before I decided to end the conversation and go to bed. He did tell me he was going for a walk. That was about eleven-thirty-five. I sat up eating my snack before falling asleep.”   
“And then we were all rudely awakened by Mr. Randall’s yells for help,” said Peacock.   
“Speaking of,” began Mustard, “are we sure he didn’t do it? He did find the body after all.”   
“What?” exclaimed Red.   
“Jack has a point,” said Green, rubbing his chin. “You did find him just in the nick of time.”   
“B-but what reason would I have for trying to kill Signor Russo?”   
“I don’t know, but you were the one who locked the door last night,” said Mustard.   
Peacock folded her arms. “Why yes, he was the one who locked the door.”   
“What’s that got to do with anything?”   
“You just as easily could have left that door unlocked,” said Mustard. “Then you followed Russo out and stabbed him. And then you conveniently find him later, on the brink of death.”   
“What?” exclaimed Sunny.   
White stepped towards Red and put her arm around him. “Jack, how dare you! Red has only just started here, why would he put his job in jeopardy like that?”   
But Red saw another hole in Mustard’s reasoning. “I wouldn’t have had to leave it unlocked if Signor Russo had to unlock it to go out on his walk, Mr. Mustard.” Mustard glanced at him, blinking in surprise. “There’s no special key to the back door. Signor Russo could have unlocked it all by himself. I wouldn’t have to leave it unlocked to follow Signor Russo out. Besides, who here but Miss White even knew he was going out on a walk? And besides, like Mr. Hughes said, I was in bed with the others by ten o’clock. You try carrying in everyone’s luggage and doing all these chores and not be tired by ten.” Red glared at Mustard, a challenge in his eyes.   
White patted his back. “That’s right, Red, you tell him. Besides, you do like flying for Reginald, don’t you?”   
“I do indeed.”   
“So there, you see? Not only does he not have a motive, he didn’t even have the opportunity.” White turned to Mustard. “Really, Jack, how could you? Besides, Red is a dear, sweet boy and I will not let you tarnish his reputation with such blatant lies.” Mustard growled, but said no more on the matter. Apparently Red and White won.   
Roy let out a breath. “Well, everyone seems to have pretty good alibis, and there’s only two things who can really tell us the truth. One is unconscious upstairs, the other is missing.”   
“Missing?” chorused a few voices.   
Roy nodded. “I searched the back yard already. I didn’t find the murder, well, attempt, weapon.”   
“How uncivilized, carrying around a bloody knife everywhere.”   
Plum rolled his eyes. “They probably cleaned it off first, Eleanor. I didn’t do it, and even I know better than that.”   
“I’m sure we all would,” said Scarlet.   
“But you also know what that means?’ asked Green.   
Everyone turned to him. “What?”   
“If none of us did it, the would-be murderer is still at large.” There was a stunned silence as his words sank in.   
“Oh, oh, oh!” said Peacock. “Well, that reminds me, I do have an appointment I need to get to.”  
Plum smacked his forehead. “And I’ve got that meeting!”   
“I too have a meeting,” said Scarlet.   
“So do I,” mumbled Mustard.   
“I just have an appointment,” said White.  
“So do I,” said Green.   
“A bloody knife reminds you of appointments and meetings?” asked Roy incredulously. “On second thought, that actually kinda makes sense.”   
“What did you just say?” asked Peacock.  
Roy ignored the question. “I’m sure you all have things you need to get to, so I’ll finish this up real quick with one last question.” He turned to Mr. Hughes. “Would you be willing to let your chauffeur take these good people to wherever they need to go?”   
Mr. Hughes nodded before glancing at Sunny. “Of course!” He leaned in and whispered to Red. “And I want you to go with him, watch his back.”   
Red nodded. “Will do.”   
“Well then, now that that’s all settled, I’d better go book a seat,” said Peacock, heading up the stairs.   
“Me too!” chorused the other five as they followed her up.   
“And I want to search for the knife again, I hope I only missed it, but if it really isn’t there . . .” Roy left the sentence hanging as he walked out. An hour later, Sunny and Red were taking the six guests to the airport, each of them managed to find a seat on the next plane back to Hollywood. They dropped them off, and the guests left without so much as a thank you or a goodbye, except for White.   
She gave Red a quick hug. “You be careful in that lodge, alright? Wouldn’t want that horrible criminal to kill you.”   
“Don’t worry Miss White, I’ll be careful.”   
“And you won’t forget to send that autograph to your sisters?”   
Red pulled out an envelope from his back pocket. “I’m going to mail it to them on our way home.”   
White smiled. “Wonderful. Good luck.” She waved at Sunny who was still sitting in the driver’s seat. “You be careful too, Sunny! Take care of each other!”   
Sunny smiled and waved. “I will!” White waved before walking into the airport. Red climbed back into the car.   
He glanced at Sunny. “What?”   
“I’m warning you, she’s going to betray you one day.”   
“I know, but right now, I’m glad it hasn’t happened yet.”   
Sunny started the car. “You know, to be honest, so am I.” They did stop at the post office and mailed the autograph. Red was smiling, he hoped he could be there when his sisters opened the envelope. He even put a little something in for his brother Roger and their parents, as well as a letter telling everyone about his adventures so far. He did mention that Signor Russo had been injured and was resting, but he didn’t include the seriousness of the matter.   
When they got back, Roy had finished his search. He still hadn’t found the weapon, even with Mr. Hughes and the twins having helped him look in the surrounding areas and in the house, twice. It seemed to have vanished into thin air. The group sat in the living room to go over everything they knew.   
Roy pursed his lips. “I almost feel bad for suspecting those six friends of yours, it really does seem like they didn’t do it.”   
“Unless they took the weapon with them on the plane,” suggested Sienna.   
“That is a possibility, but that means they would have had to clean the knife, yes, let’s call it what it is, inside the house. But you and your sister both said so yourselves that there were no out of place towels or any wet spots, even near the house. No, I really think this was an outside source and had to do with that meeting he had. I just wish he would hurry it up and tell us what it was all about.” He glanced at Mr. Hughes. “Though I can understand not divulging the meeting to you right away, what with the others crowding around like vultures.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “I do too, but I can tell you it had to do with his inheritance. I’m assuming he got it.”   
Red gasped. “Oh speaking of, that’s also why I didn’t say anything either!”   
Everyone looked at him. “What do you mean, Red?”   
“When I found him, Signor Russo was mumbling something.” The others leaned in, anxious to hear what he had to say. “He said ‘must find Grandfather’s hilt’.” Roy quickly wrote it down in his notebook while the others gasped.   
“Do you think that has to do with him getting his will?”   
“It’s a possibility, but it would be best to wait until Signor Russo woke up to confirm this.” Mr. Hughes looked at Red. “Because if it is true, we’re going to have to find that hilt for him.”   
Red nodded. “I’ll help however I can.”   
Mr.Hughes smiled. “Thank you.”   
“Might as well count me in,” said Sunny. “I’m still going to get paid for it.” The others chuckled.   
“But with this new information,” said Roy, bringing everyone’s attention back to the problem at hand, “this could very well mean that there’s someone else looking for the hilt as well and doesn’t want Signor Russo to find it before they can. There’s motive, opportunity, and they quite possibly still have the knife.”   
Mr. Hughes rose from his chair. “Well then, I suggest we take turns staying by his side so that, one, we can make sure he doesn’t get out of bed, and two, we can confirm this information as quickly as possible. If this is a competitor for the will, which seems to be the most likely explanation, then they’ve got a head start on us. The faster we can get out there to look for the hilt, the better.” The others nodded and agreed. “Good, Red, I’m going to ask you to take the first watch. I have to make a few phone calls and then I’ll relieve you.”   
Red nodded. “Yes sir.” The next two days were pretty much the same, they would take turns sitting by Signor Russo’s bed and Dr. Kin would come for dinner to check on him. It was on the third out from the attack, a few minutes before Dr. Kin showed up, that Red nearly fell out of his chair in surprise.   
Signor Russo sat straight up in his bed and shouted, “No, you can’t have it!” Red rushed to his side and pinned him down as he tried to get out of bed. “No! I can’t let them have it, it’s mine!”   
“Signor Russo, please calm down! It’s Red! You’ve been hurt really badly!”   
“But I can’t let them get to it!”   
“Get to what, Signor Russo?”   
“My grandfather’s hilt! They can’t have it!”   
“Why can’t they have it?”   
“Because his will is on it, and they’re out to either destroy it or change it so I can’t have my inheritance!”


	6. Helping Signor Russo

“So it was someone who was after Signor Russo’s inheritance,” said Dr. Kin. They were sitting in the living room after helping her calm down Signor Russo and convince him to go back to sleep, which he finally did. Roy asked him a few questions about the attack, but only got a rant about a masked fellow about Mustard’s height who had attacked him. He did confirm White’s story before falling asleep.   
Mr. Hughes let out a huff. “So it would seem.”  
Roy narrowed his eyes. “Yes, so it would seem indeed, quite conveniently I might add.” Mr. Hughes shot him a glare. Roy rolled his eyes and sighed. “I’m still glad your six guests left though.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “So am I, and I am glad to hear that none of them did it.”   
Roy and Dr. Kin shot Mr. Hughes a glance. “I still would feel better if you stopped hanging out with them, Reginald,” said Dr. Kin slowly.   
“I second that. Those six are pretty ruthless when it comes to getting their way,” piped Roy.   
“But if they’re so distrustful of each other that they’ll watch each other like hawks, then none of them should make a move against me. Or if any of them did, they’re sure to tell.” Mr. Hughes glanced between Dr. Kin and Roy. “Right?”   
Roy let out an exasperated sigh. “That is a point, but, I’d rather you not take any chances.”   
Mr. Hughes waved his hand. “I’ll be fine. Besides, that’s not the most important thing right now. We have to find out how to help Signor Russo.”   
Roy threw up his hands. “Fine, you’re the boss. I’ll get in contact with his lawyer and see if I can get more information.”   
“And I’ll get some sedatives if he gives you any more problems,” said Dr. Kin.   
Mr. Hughes bowed his head. “Thank you.” He turned to Roy. “And I’ll call Jarrod to see if he can help you with the lawyer.”   
Roy nodded. “Thank you.” The two bid their host farewell and left.   
Mr. Hughes sighed as he rose from the sofa. “Well, now that Ettore is finally on the mend, we can rest a little easier, but we should continue our vigilance tonight, don’t need him trying to get out of bed in the middle of the night. We’ll keep to the same schedule.”   
Red let out a huff. He had to ask him, it was now or never. “Mr. Hughes?”   
Mr. Hughes turned and looked at Red. “Yes?”   
“Why do you continue to hang out with those six if you know they can’t be trusted?” Sunny and the twins gasped before glancing at Mr. Hughes to see his expression, but he seemed unchanged.   
Mr. Hughes surprised them all by chuckling softly. “Stay in my employ, Red Randall, and I just might tell you. I’m going to call Jarrod Zafeiri and then I’m going to bed. Good night.” With that, Mr. Hughes left the room. Sunny’s and the twins’ mouths dropped open before crowding around Red.   
“That was a risky thing to ask, Red,” said Sunny.   
“You mean none of you asked about this?”   
“And risk losing our jobs?” asked Sienna. “Heck no!”   
Red sighed. “Fair point.”   
“Then why did you ask?” asked Saffron.   
“Because Miss White was right, I do like flying for Mr. Hughes, and that’s after only one flight. And, well, I don’t want to lose this job because someone killed him.”   
“Oh man, you have a really good point there,” said Sunny, his eyes widening and he began drumming his fingers on his chin.   
“I hadn’t thought of it that way,” said Saffron softly, glancing down.   
“None of us did, to be honest,” said Sienna with a shake of her head. She huffed before turning to Red. “So, what do you suggest we do?”   
“Well, for now, let’s make sure that Signor Russo doesn’t do anything to aggravate his wounds. There’s nothing more we can do until Mr. Zafeiri and Mr. Bivens get back to us with the details about Signor Russo’s meeting.”   
The other three nodded. “Fair enough,” said Sunny. He let out a huff. “Man, I just can’t believe this happened to Signor Russo. But, I guess some people will kill for money.”   
“Like those six,” mumbled Sienna.   
Red stood up with a sigh. “Alright, enough talk about those six. We have work to do. Best to get it done now. We’ll discuss Signor Russo’s problem once we find out more about it.”   
Sunny stood up and saluted Red. “Aye aye Captain!”   
Red rolled his eyes. “Now Sunny, I was being serious.”   
Sunny gave him a genuine smile. “So was I.”   
Red blinked before rolling his eyes again. “Ok, whatever. I’ve got the first watch. I’ll see you in two hours, Sunny.” He then left the room and went up the stairs towards Signor Russo’s room to keep watch.   
The night passed uneventfully, minus a bit of mumbling from Signor Russo about his grandfather’s hilt again. Red caught some of it, but the majority of it was the same things he had been saying since Red had found him, that they were after the hilt and they were trying to take his inheritance away from him, but never said who they were. Red hoped that Roy and Jarrod would have some answers for them in the morning and hopefully put Signor Russo’s mind to ease.   
The call they were hoping for didn’t come until way after lunch. Jarrod had finally gotten a hold of the lawyer for the estate and got all the details he could get. Apparently the lawyer wasn’t allowed to give out much more than confirm Signor’ Russo’s story, that he had to find his grandfather’s hilt in order to inherit his estate in northern California and that there were parties looking to inherit as well, namely his cousins. Jarrod had Roy helping him look into their history and would report back once they had all of their information.  
Red let out a huff once Mr. Hughes told them everything Jarrod had told him. “So, that gives us four suspects, technically.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “Basically. All Jarrod has to do is give us the most likely of the four who attacked Signor Russo.”   
“But that lawyer couldn’t give us any more details on where to find the hilt?” asked Sunny.   
Mr. Hughes shook his head. “That’s apparently information that only the five grandchildren were going to get, if they divulge that information with others then that was their choice, but the lawyer was not allowed to give it to anyone else. It’s what is written in the will.”   
Sunny huffed. “Sounds like a weird will.”   
Mr. Hughes chuckled. “It kind of does, but since we didn’t know Signor Russo’s grandfather personally, well, we really shouldn’t be allowed to say anything on the matter. If the fellow wanted to see which of his grandchildren were hard-working and honest and this was the best way he could figure, well, he decided to take it. It might be weird to us, but sometimes you have to be weird in order to find the honest ones.”   
Red and Sunny snuck sly glances at each other. Was this part of what made Mr. Hughes so weird? That he was being weird to find the honest people he could trust? It was, bluntly, a really weird way to go about it.  
Red turned back to Mr. Hughes. “But basically, we wanted more information, we would have to talk to Signor Russo.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “Yes, and I hope Dr. Kin will allow us to speak to him about the will tonight.”   
Dr. Kin did give her permission, but she insisted on staying in the room while the group talked with Signor Russo. If she thought he was becoming too agitated by the discussion, she would make it stop.   
Mr. Hughes decided to approach him gently on the matter. “Ettore, how are you feeling?”   
Signor Russo smiled wanly at the group. “Quite grateful to all of you for saving my life. How can I ever repay you?”   
Mr. Hughes cleared his throat. “Well, um, could you give us the details concerning your inheritance?”   
Signor Russo blinked in confusion. “Whatever for?”   
Mr. Hughes sighed. “Ettore, I want to help you claim your inheritance.”   
Signor Russo opened and closed his mouth a couple of times before he could speak. “Y-you want to . . . help me get my inheritance?   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “But of course, you’re in no condition to search for it yourself. And if you were attacked . . .”   
“But if they found out you were helping me, then you will be the one attacked!”   
Mr. Hughes waved his hand. “Come now Ettore, I’ll have help.” He indicated Red and Sunny with a wave of his hands. “They’ll be with me.” He indicated the twins and Dr. Kin. “And I’ll be leaving you with the best care this side of the United States.”   
Signor Russo glanced worriedly at Red and Sunny. “But . . . they’re so young . . .”   
Sunny puffed up his chest. “Don’t worry, Signor Russo, between me and Red, we’ll beat up any gang!”   
Red chuckled nervously. “Um, I don’t know about that . . . but we’ll definitely do our best.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “And Roy will join us once he’s finished looking into your cousins.”   
Tears seemed to fill Signor Russo’s eyes. “How, how can I ever thank you?” he whispered hoarsely.   
Mr. Hughes patted his shoulder, smiling. “Get better soon, alright? I’d like to perfect my fencing technique.”   
Signor Russo chuckled as he wiped a tear from his eye. “That sounds so little in comparison for all that you’re doing for me.”   
Hr. Hughes shrugged. “It’s what I do for my friends.”   
Signor Russo seemed to brighten at that before obligingly telling them everything. “My grandfather was a fantastic fencer, you could say it runs in the family.” He chuckled slightly. “He taught all of us, his children and grandchildren. He always claimed that my father, Aunt Gianna, and myself were his top students, but we were all eager students and learned rather quickly. But fencing was more of a hobby to my grandfather, his wealth came in from the vineyard and winery that he owned, located on an island in Mission Bay, California. It prospered, giving him wealth and prosperity, and a bit of fame, as it turns out.” He let out a little sigh. “Part of that meeting included giving permissions to Gene Zeller to shoot a fictionalized account of my grandfather’s life.”   
Sunny gasped. “Your grandfather’s story is going to be made into a movie?” Signor Russo nodded. “Dude, that’s so cool!”   
Signor Russo smiled faintly. “Glad you think so, but like I said, that was only part of the meeting, and I had no say in the matter, that was all Aunt Gianna’s decision, really, but they wanted the rest of the family’s permission so we would all get a share in the profits.” Signor Russo let out a breath. “And then came the news about the Adalante.”   
“The what?” asked Red, Sunny, and the twins at once.   
“The Adalante, my grandfather’s finest and prize fencing blade.”   
“Wait, your grandfather named his sword?” asked Sunny.   
Signor Russo rolled his eyes. “It’s an old tradition to name your things, Mr. Swarna. Swords have been named for millenia, long before cars were ever dreamed of.”   
Sunny became a little red in the face and glanced down sheepishly. “Oh.”   
“Oh, yes, just like Excalibur!” exclaimed Sienna.   
Signor Russo grinned at her. “Well, at least someone gets it.” He let out a breath. “Anyways, my grandfather told us that the Adalante was the key to the estate. We all thought he meant a literal key, but this meeting told us he meant his will. His will is hidden on the hilt of his sword, and whoever is named on it becomes the inheritor of his estate . . . or, well, more like the inheritor of his wealth since his estate has been since sold off to land developers. One guy was making a resort and another was building housing.” He winced slightly as he gingerly touched his wounds. “And now it looks like I must rely on you to get to it first.”   
“But why are you just now getting this inheritance?” asked Mr. Hughes. “Hasn’t your grandfather been dead for some time?”   
Signor Russo nodded. “He has, but my grandmother is a wry, stubborn old thing who only just recently passed. None of us would get the inheritance while she was still alive.” He huffed. “And I do believe she lived so long just to spite us all.” He chuckled. “She was quite the woman, I see why my grandfather married her.”   
Mr. Hughes began pacing the floor. “So, your grandfather’s will would not pass to any of his grandchildren unless your grandmother passed away, which has happened.”   
Sienna glanced between the two men. “Uh, but what about the funeral? Shouldn’t you have been there instead of here?”   
“Oh, yes, I was coming to that.” Signor Russo let out a sigh. “My grandmother passed away last year.”   
Sunny snapped his fingers. “Oh, that month that Mr. Hughes gave you time off!”   
Signor Russo nodded. “Right.”   
“But then why were you just now getting this meeting?” asked Red.   
Signor Russo sighed again, but this sigh seemed to be heavier. “Because my cousin, Fabrizio Dente, has been making it hard. According to my meeting, the bulk of my grandfather’s wealth was to go to me and the rest was to be split up between my cousins, provided I could produce the blade. Fabrizio is the only one who’s been fighting that, the greedy scoundrel. He has racked up lots of debt, but not only would the inheritance pay for all of that, there would be enough left over for him to just throw about like he always does.”   
Red rubbed his chin. “Is your cousin about the same height as Mr. Mustard?”   
Signor Russo shook his head, becoming more and more confused. “No, no he isn’t. See, that’s what got me spooked, fellows. I know my cousin’s fight style, and because I’ve fenced with Mustard, I know his now too, and the guy who attacked me wasn’t either of them. It’s got me wondering if there’s a third party, an illegitimate heir, or something. My grandfather did have an . . . an affair with a woman before he married my grandmother, something we only learned about on his deathbed. Grandmother wondered if there was a child from that union, but Grandfather didn’t know. He had looked, but couldn’t find her, so he eventually gave up on it. Besides, an attack like this isn’t Fabrizio’s thing. Yes, he’s a lying snake and is as greedy as they come, but he has some morals and wouldn’t kill a man or hire anyone to kill a man. He’d hire goons in the area to look for the sword so he could forge a fake will, but that would be it. This . . . this just isn’t his thing.”   
“But we are still having to deal with him in finding the Adalante,” said Mr. Hughes.   
Signor Russo nodded. “Yes, yes I suppose so, but he doesn’t make me concerned for your safety.”   
Mr. Hughes chuckled. “Don’t worry about a thing, Ettore, like I mentioned, I’ll have the best help, and Roy will be joining us.”   
Sunny puffed out his chest again. “Just you wait, Signor Russo, we’ll be back in no time with the hilt of the Ad-ala-nte and the guy who attacked you will be behind bars!” Saffron snorted and Sienna rolled her eyes before shooting Sunny a withering glare which depuffed him slightly.   
Signor Russo smiled wanly. “I-I guess that’s some good news.”   
“Well, it’s yours, Ettore. And please don’t worry about a thing,” said Mr. Hughes as he patted Signor Russo’s shoulder, “we’ll watch our backs and be extremely careful.”   
Signor Russo nodded. “Glad to hear it.”   
“Good.” Mr. Hughes turned to Red and Sunny. “Boys, we’re heading for Mission Bay first thing in the morning. Pack your bags now.”


	7. To Mission Bay

The three got up early the next morning and finished preparing for their trip, getting luggage into the car, while the twins made breakfast.   
“One thing’s for sure,” said Sienna when they all sat down to breakfast, “Saffron and I won’t have to fix as much food. You’re going to have to fend for yourselves.”   
Sunny groaned. “I guess that’s up to me then.” He glanced at Red. “Unless you’ve got some expertise in cooking.”   
Red shrugged. “My mom made sure we all knew the basics of cooking, I can whip up something quick.”   
Mr. Hughes chuckled. “Don’t worry, we can eat out and get take-out. I didn’t exactly hire you two for your cooking skills after all.” He let out a huff as he looked pointedly at Sunny, though his eyes twinkled merrily. “And to be honest, Thanksgiving was a good enough of an example of your cooking.”   
“Aw, come on Mr. Hughes! I only burnt one turkey! Everything else came out fine!”   
Mr. Hughes chuckled. “Exactly why Stephanie refuses to let anyone else but herself and the twins do the cooking.”   
Red snorted. “You burnt a turkey?”   
“Hey! Not my fault that stupid oven doesn’t work properly.”   
“Oh it works just fine,” said Sienna, “you just don’t know how to use it.”   
Sunny grumbled. “Whatever.”  
Mr. Hughes chuckled. “Alright, that’s enough. We’ll definitely survive. But we’ll have to cut this short. We need to meet Roy at the airport before we head south.” He glanced at his phone. “And that plane’s landing in half an hour, so we should be leaving in a few minutes. I’m going to talk to Ettore for a minute,” he said as he stood up.   
The four nodded. “Yes sir.” They quickly finished eating their breakfast. The boys helped clean up a bit before dashing out to the car to double check that they had everything. A minute later, Mr. Hughes walked to the car, and they were backing out of the garage. They sped towards the airport, the ride fairly quiet, each to his own thoughts, it would seem. Red, sitting in the front passenger seat, began to wonder about the attack. If Signor Russo was right and he knew his cousin quite well, then the attack would not have been ordered by his greediest cousin, Fabrizio Dente. But would his goons have done it without prompting by Fabrizio? Or was there in fact another party, an illegitimate heir, as Signor Russo suspected existing? Red pursed his lips. The answer might only come once they found the hilt. But what could happen in the meantime?   
They arrived at the airport ten minutes after the plane had landed, and found Roy waiting for them outside. He quickly threw his luggage into the trunk before getting into the back seat next to Mr. Hughes with his briefcase. He opened it and rummaged through some papers as Sunny pulled away from the airport.   
“Well,” began Roy, “I agree with Signor Russo, I think Fabrizio Dente is our top suspect. Well, of the speculated inheritors, that is. Jarrod and I could not find any information on the woman Russo’s grandfather had an affair with, but he said he would keep looking. Did Signor Russo give you anything?”   
“Not about the illegitimate heir, but he did tell me that the sword was buried in a place his grandfather was able to dig up on his own, and it was in one of the wine storehouses.” Mr. Hughes took a slip of paper out of his pocket and handed it to Roy. “He also gave me the names and numbers of the land developers as well as Gene Zeller’s in case we needed to talk to him. He also told me that he thinks we should talk to the writer of the movie, Vincent Steele.” Red and Sunny let out soft, surprised gasps at the name. Vincent Steele was one of the top writers in Hollywood! This movie was going to turn out epic. “It seems the fellow has been doing a lot of research on Ettore’s grandfather and his research might prove to be valuable to us in finding the Adalante. However, Ettore doesn’t have his number, but he hopes Gene does.”   
Roy scoffed. “He’d better. What’s a director doing without knowing the number of his head writer?”   
“And one of the best writers in Hollywood!” blurted Sunny.   
Mr. Hughes eyed him in the rearview mirror. “That’s not important right now, Sunny. Yes, he is a very well-renowned screenwriter, but he is also tired of the fame. We have to tread carefully or we might not get the information we need.” He looked pointedly at Sunny. “Which means no mention of his fame, understand?”   
Sunny huffed. “Yes sir.” But his eyes were sparkling, which Red figured to mean that he just wanted to have the bragging rights to having met the guy more than anything. Red had to admit that he wanted to meet Vincent Steele as well, but he understood that the guy wanted some privacy, some semblance of a regular life.   
“Same goes for you too, Red,” said Mr. Hughes, breaking into his thoughts.   
Red shot him a more cheery smile. “Yes sir.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “Good, but if either of you let out one peep, and I mean one tiny peep, about getting to meet a famous movie writer, you’re going to have to wait out in the car until Roy and I are finished talking with him, understand?”   
“Yes sir!” Both saluted him.   
“Mr. Hughes, who’s this Miguel Jimenez guy?” asked Roy as he glanced over the paper Mr. Hughes had given him.   
“That’s the name of the outlaw who held Ettore’s grandfather for ransom, and the guy who he fought in what will be now known as the legendary final battle of the Adalante.” Mr. Hughes scoffed. “At least, that’s how the movie will portray it as. Anyways, Ettore figured we should look up any of his descendants if we needed to.”   
Roy let out a huff as he reached into his briefcase and pulled out a miniature laptop. “It’s best if we have our bases covered. Where’s the estate located? Or, well, where it once was located?”   
“Still technically located there,” said Mr. Hughes, “on a little island called Paradise Point. The land developers have only begun construction since, again, nothing could be done with it until Ettore’s grandmother had passed away. Some of it has already been turned into a partial suburb, but that means that several parts of it are still there, and we do need to hurry in case they bulldoze the Adalante’s hiding place.”   
Roy nodded as he typed on this laptop. “Alright, and where is the movie being filmed?”   
“Several locations just east of Sacramento,” replied Mr. Hughes.   
“Well, we could hit up the movie set first,” said Roy, looking at his laptop intensely. “Then head over to the old estate. But I’ll look up any relatives of this Miguel Jimenez fellow and see if any are still in the area. You never know what information we can get.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “That sounds good. I’d better give Gene a call to let him know we’re coming and to call up these land developers and see if we can get a meeting with them.”   
“So where should I head to, sir?” asked Sunny.   
“Keep on to Sacramento for now Sunny, I’ll let you know once I get the location of the filming from Gene.”   
“Aye aye Captain!” Everyone glanced at him. “What?”   
“I thought you called Red that?” said Mr. Hughes as an eyebrow went up slightly.   
Sunny shrugged. “Well, he’s only the captain when he’s piloting, right now you’re the captain.”   
Mr. Hughes chuckled. “Fair enough.” He pulled out his phone and began making the calls while Roy went back to looking up Miguel Jimenez.  
Mr. Hughes was able to get the location of the film set, but they wouldn’t be able to visit until the next day. That eventually cleared them up for a meeting with the foreman for one of the land developers. They had begun clearing the land, but there were a few buildings from the Russo estate still standing. They would be able to take a look through them all around two o’clock. The second developer would not be able to meet them until the following day as well, but Mr. Hughes was sure to set up an appointment so their chances of looking over any buildings still standing was secure. The calls took less than an hour. There were still two hours left until they reached Sacramento, so Mr. Hughes put in a call to a motel, getting two rooms for them to share.   
“We’ll deposit our luggage at the motel and get lunch before we go to our meeting with Jim Emory,” said Mr. Hughes, mentioning the foreman’s name. “But we are going to have to make that quick as they have a tight schedule to keep.”   
“We are seriously cutting this close,” mumbled Roy, never taking his eyes off his laptop.   
Mr. Hughes sighed. “Well, what can I say? A lot of factors went into this, and that attack only prevented Ettore from continuing on his search. We’ve spent quite a few days making sure he would live before we even started, so we have a lot of catching up to do.” He looked at Red and Sunny. “I do hope all our brain power is enough to find it quickly.”   
Red turned in his seat and gave Mr. Hughes a soft smile. “My brain power I can guarantee you will work great, my muscles on the other hand . . .” He shot a glance at Sunny. “Well, let’s just say I highly doubt I can beat up any gang members, like Sunny was hoping for.”   
“Come on man, some guys look weaker than they are. You and I are fairly skinny, doesn’t mean we don’t have our fair share of muscles.”   
Red rolled his eyes and scoffed. “Yeah, whatever.”   
“Sunny, let’s just get to our motel and then head to Mission Bay. We’ll think about beating up gangs when that time comes, alright?” said Mr. Hughes.   
Sunny huffed. “Yes sir.” But his eyes were still twinkling with mischief and pleasure.   
“Ah-ha!” Everyone jumped at Roy’s exclamation.  
Mr. Hughes chuckled. “I assume you’ve found something Roy.”   
Roy snickered. “Boy did I. There’s a relative of Miguel Jimenez, also named Miguel Jimenez, who lives in Stockton. Address is unknown, but that must mean he lives on the river. Maybe the post office can point us in the right direction.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “Well that’s good. He’s still living in the same general area, he might even know more about the estate before it was all changed.”   
Roy nodded enthusiastically. “That’s what I’m thinking. Maybe we can head out there after we’ve talked to Jim Emory.”   
Mr. Hughes glanced at his watch. “Hmm, I don’t know. We’re already going to be talking to Jim late in the afternoon, and who knows how long we’re going to take looking around. I mean, if there’s enough time today, we can give it a go, or at least talk to the post office. We might have more luck going tomorrow after we’ve talked to Gene.”   
Roy sighed and nodded. “Fair enough.”   
“But we can make a few phone calls now. If Mr. Jimenez does live on the river, we’re going to need a boat. And I can call the post office to tell them to expect us. Can you get me those numbers, Roy?”   
“I definitely can,” said Roy as he began looking up the numbers. Mr. Hughes made the calls. They had a boat reserved for them for the rest of the week and the post office knew they were coming by. They were within a half hour’s drive of Sacramento now. The rest of the drive was quiet, but Red’s heart was thumping wildly with excited anticipation. He had only just started working for Mr. Hughes, and he was already going to meet some of the most famous people in Hollywood! And go on a treasure hunt to boot!  
After checking into their hotel rooms and depositing their bags, the foursome went out to eat. They had a little bit of time to relax a bit afterwards before needing to hit the road again. The vineyard that used to belong to the Russo family was on an island just north of Paradise Point, connected to the mainland and Paradise Point by bridges. A couple of minutes before two, they pulled into a construction site. A lean, suntanned man with thinning blonde hair waved them over to a long, folding table. He adjusted his hard hat, clearly nervous and excited at the same time. An appearance by a wealthy man like Mr. Hughes was certainly rare at a construction site.  
Mr. Hughes approached him. “Jim Emory?”   
The man grinned as he proceeded to shake hands with Mr. Hughes, the nervous fading away with the easy way Mr. Hughes addressed him. “Yes sir, and it's hard to not recognize you, Mr. Reginald Hughes.”  
Mr. Hughes smiled. “Yes, so it would seem.” He turned and introduced Roy, Red, and Sunny to Jim.   
Jim shook hands with all of them. “A pleasure to meet you. My boss tells me you're looking for the hilt of the Adalante, the sword owned by Giovanni Russo?”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “That's right. His grandson was supposed to come down here a while ago to look for it himself, but, um, I’m afraid he’s been unwell. He’s staying at my lodge until he's better. So until then, we figured we'd take up the search for him.”   
“That's understandable, I do hope he's feeling better soon.”  
“I was assured that he’s well on the mend, but since you have a schedule to keep . . .”  
Jim held up a finger. “Ah, yes, speaking of, I have a bulldozer coming in at three, three-thirty, depending on how long his current demolition is going. I would appreciate it if you could be done with your search by then.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “We should be, I don't think it will take that long, unless we have to dig really deep.”   
Jim grinned and stuck out his thumb at a group of men working with equipment. “We’ve got enough guys here to help you with that. Just give us a holler.”   
Mr. Hughes smiled. “I think we might just do that.”  
Jim grinned. “Sounds good then.” He turned and pointed towards an old, one-story stone building. Red thought it looked quite sad among all the construction materials, like it wanted to join its friends but wasn't allowed to yet. “That's the old wine storehouse. We have dug up other spots around here but haven't found a hilt. That storehouse would be the most likely place for it.”   
Mr. Hughes gave a grateful nod. “Thank you. We’ll begin our search and call you if we need any assistance.”   
Jim tipped his hard hat. “We’ll be listening.”   
Mr. Hughes turned to his team. “Let's get in there and start looking.” They nodded and followed him to the building while Jim turned to giving out orders to his crew. The first floor went by very quickly, there was nothing but dusty old wine bottle holders and a few empty bottles. They did a thorough investigation just in case, but there was nothing more to be found. They went into the cellar and it seemed to be much the same thing. The construction crew, or whoever, made sure anything of value was cleared out before letting the building be demolished.   
“Well, that was a whole lot of nothing,” said Roy as they met up at a door into another room.   
“Well, maybe we’ll find something in here,” said Mr. Hughes as he opened the door and went in. Everyone paused in their tracks and stared at the only item in the room, an old trunk.   
“Wow!” exclaimed Sunny. “We found it!” Both Red’s and Mr. Hughes’s eyes narrowed. That seemed a little too easy. But the group just about pounced on the chest and pried it open. Sunny’s excitement died down when they finally got it open. “Aw, it’s nothing but a piece of paper! Why would you need a whole truck for a piece for paper?”   
Red tried moving the trunk, but it wouldn’t budge, even when Roy and Mr. Hughes tried to help him. “Hmm, looks like they couldn’t get this trunk out of here and took everything else but this piece of paper,” he reasoned.  
Roy nodded. “That’s what I was thinking.”   
“But why won’t this trunk move.”  
“Ah-ha,” said Roy. He reached in and pulled up a false bottom, revealing that the actual bottom of the trunk had been bolted to the floor.   
Sunny blinked. “Ok, well that answers that question. But then, why did Giovanni Russo want this to stay here?” Red looked at the piece of paper.  
Mr. Hughes shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe dear Aunt Gianna might know, but that’s not what we’re here for.”   
Red’s forehead furrowed. “Well, according to this paper, there are two other wine storehouses. Maybe the Adalante is in one of those.”   
“It better be,” said Roy, “because it’s most certainly not here.”   
“But we haven’t exactly dug very much,” said Sunny slowly.   
Mr. Hughes sighed and nodded, shooting a glance at his watch. “I know, but it doesn’t seem likely that Mr. Giovanni would have buried a sword here.” He glanced at each of them. “Do you think you would have been able to dig real deep with your bare hands?” Red and Sunny shook their heads, no, in fact, they had trouble digging in some places. “So the Adalante isn’t here.” He pointed to Red. “But we did find that, and that might prove to be very helpful in our search. Come on, it’s nearing three o’clock. I’m sure Mr. Emory would be happy to have us out of here so his bulldozer can start on time.”   
The other three nodded. “Right.” They stood up and closed the lid to the trunk. Red paused and pulled out his phone to snap a few quick pictures. It was a nice old trunk, it was too bad Giovanni had it bolted to the ground, otherwise Red would have taken it and used it for himself. As soon as he snapped the last picture, he dashed out the door and began to cough violently. Smoke was filling up the room!   
“I can hear the bulldozer! It’s started up! Everyone out now!” shouted Mr. Hughes between coughs. Red’s chest began to tighten from fear and the smoke as the group dashed to the stairs. Dust began falling around them as they raced to the top. The air was better at the top, but they didn’t stop to breathe. They raced towards the door and burst out into the open. The four fell to the ground, gasping for breath. Jim’s voice could be heard over the noise, ordering the bulldozer to stop. Red sat up and he looked at the man behind the wheel. Their eyes locked, and Red did not like what he saw.


	8. Mr. Hughes Has Some Moves

Several members of the construction crew came forward and helped up the four while Jim went towards the bulldozer and yelled at the driver.  
“I told you to wait because these four were still in there!”   
“And I told you my last job put me behind schedule! I have another demolition to do today before I can go home for the weekend!”   
“You could have just waited one minute!” retorted Jim. “One minute would not have killed you!”   
The man alighted from the bulldozer, glaring at Mr. Hughes and his group. Red did not like the looks of this guy. He had a head full of dirty blonde hair, freckles, and grey eyes that looked like they were looking for a fight. And the look he had given Red when they got out sent shivers down his spine. He looked at him like he had missed his kill. And now he was just blaming them for all his problems. Red gritted his teeth. This guy was determined to be trouble for them. Was he one of the goons Fabrizio hired? Speaking of, if he was, did Fabrizio know that they were attempting to kill people? Or was it in fact the unnamed illegitimate child or grandchild of Giovanni Russo who was behind all this?   
“Mr. Hughes, I am so sorry,” began Jim.   
“What were they even doing in there?” shouted the bulldozer driver. “I was told I had a clear path!”   
“This is why I wanted to see you first, Harry!” said Jim. “Why do you have to be so thick-headed!”   
Red stepped forward and spoke on instinct. “Who paid you?” There was a momentary silence as everyone stared at him in shock, but he kept his eyes on Harry. Harry’s eyes had widened in shock as well, but with the underlying hint that Red had hit his mark.   
Sunny caught it too and gasped. “So someone did pay you to kill us!”   
“What? That’s absurd,” said Harry. It didn’t help that he laughed a bit cruelly. “Now whatever gave you that idea?”   
“Well for one thing, you didn’t look too pleased to see that we made it out alive,” muttered Red. Harry let out a soft growl. “And secondly, you’re not doing a very good job of hiding it.” Harry’s mouth dropped open slightly in shock before snapping it shut into a scowl.   
“I won’t let you make a fool out of me!” He rushed back to the bulldozer.   
“Harry Madsen, what in the world are you doing?” shouted Jim.   
“I would have bluntly asked if he had gone mad,” muttered Sunny.   
Harry came back with a foil, a fencing sword, and aimed it at Red. “I challenge you to a duel! Winner is telling the truth!”   
Mr. Hughes pushed Red behind him. “He has had no training in the art of fencing, but I have. I shall duel you.”   
Harry shrugged as he lowered the foil. “Have it your way. I’ll see you back here at five o’clock.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “Five o’clock it is. Will you be bringing another foil and equipment, or should I bring my own?”   
“I’ll bring it,” grumbled Harry before walking off.   
“So much for getting home early for the weekend,” mumbled Sunny.   
“Mr. Hughes, are you sure about this?” asked Jim. “Harry has been training hard.”   
Mr. Hughes gave him a slight smirk. “So have I, Mr. Emory. He’s going to find out real quick he’s picking the wrong people to mess with.”   
Jim smirked back. “I do hope you whip him good, he could use a lesson or two in humility.”   
“Or three,” mumbled Sunny.   
Jim chuckled slightly. “Yes, well, the best of luck to you, and I guess we’ll see you back here at five.”   
Mr. Hughes reached out his hand. “We shall, but thank you for letting us into the building.”   
Jim shook his hand. “Not at all, my boss did say to let you in, so I did. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some work to finish up before this evening’s duel.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “Of course. We’ll see you at five.” Jim walked away, and the four huddled.   
“Now what?” said Sunny. “There’s now way we can head over to Stockton and poke around for a bit before heading right back. I mean, sure, we can drive around Stockton for a bit, but we wouldn’t be able to get much done, not in two hours.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “I know, but . . .” He paused and glanced around. “Let’s talk about it in the car.” The others nodded and the four quickly made their way to the car. “Red, do you still have that piece of paper?” asked Mr. Hughes as the four buckled.   
Red pulled the paper out of his pocket and showed it to them. “Yes sir I do.”   
“Good, maybe we’ll look into this clue. Roy, can you find out where the county clerk is located and give Sunny the coordinates?” asked Mr. Hughes as he pulled out his phone.   
Roy pulled out his own phone. “Um, Ok, and what are you doing?”   
Mr. Hughes let out a huff. “I think we’re going to need an extra man on this. I’m going to see if Rusty can spare Lloyd.”   
“Are you sure about that?” asked Sunny as he started up the car. Roy then gave him the coordinates for the county clerk’s office and Sunny quickly put it into the GPS. “He’s not going to be here in time for the duel.”   
“I know,” said Mr. Hughes as he put the phone to his ear. “But Roy knows the rules of a duel, and I can give you a quick rundown on them.” He held up his finger. “Hang on. Yes, hi Rusty, it’s Reggie.” While Sunny drove towards the clerk’s office, Mr. Hughes gave Rusty the whole story and asked about Lloyd coming out to help them. He ended the conversation with, “Thanks Rusty, I really appreciate it! We’ll pick him up in Sacramento. Talk to you later!”   
“When’s he coming?” asked Sunny as Mr. Hughes hung up his phone.   
Mr. Hughes let out a huff. “He’s coming to Sacramento on the seven o’clock plane, definitely not going to be here for the duel. So, I’m going to give you two a quick run-down of the rules.” Mr. Hughes went into some detail about the rules of a fencing duel, but had to cut it short when they pulled into the parking lot of the county clerk office.   
Sunny glanced at the clock as he turned off the engine. “Alright, if we’re going to be back at the construction site for five, we’re going to have to leave here at four-thirty.”   
Roy glanced at the clock and let out a breath. “One hour, yeah, maybe that will give us enough time to find out both locations.” He held up a finger. “And, if we have enough time, maybe we can ask about Miguel Jiminez’s address as well.”   
The others nodded. “Good idea,” said Mr. Hughes. “Well then, let’s get searching.” The four got out of the vehicle and went into the records office. The county clerk was in the middle of a phone call as they approached his desk.   
“Can you hold for just a minute please? Yes, thank you.” He put his hand over the mouthpiece. “Can I help you with something?”   
Mr. Hughes nodded as Red put the piece of paper on the counter. “Yes, please. We’re looking for where these two locations can be found now. They used to be wine storages for Giovanni Russo.” He pointed to the two places they were looking for.   
The clerk squinted at it for a moment before nodding his head slowly. “Yes, yes, I think I know where those two are located. I can double-check for you, but I really need to finish up this call.”   
“May we look for the two places ourselves?” asked Mr. Hughes.   
The clerk puffed out his cheeks before letting out a breath. “See, one of those is a residential and I know the owner personally, he’s insistent on keeping his privacy. If you don’t mind waiting for me to call him and ask his permission?”   
Roy leaned on the counter. “Excuse me sir, I’ m a detective, and I know for a fact that you don’t have to ask his permission. Everything in here is for public use.”   
The clerk’s eyes widened. “O-oh, um, right, I see . . . is he in trouble?”  
Roy shook his head as he straightened up. “No, we’re looking for something for a friend of ours, his grandfather used to own this land, in fact. He’s looking for his will, and the only clue we’ve had is that it’s hidden in one of these three locations.”   
“We were just at one,” muttered Sunny, “that was a wild ride to say the least.”   
The clerk huffed. “Well, alright, as long as you keep this information among yourselves. Yes, this information is public, but when you’re a celebrity who wants to keep your private life out of the limelight, well, you ask for a few favors. I have it back here. Let me finish this call and I’ll get that for you.”   
“And where would we find the information on the other location?’ asked Mr. Hughes.   
The clerk pointed to an aisle of filing cabinets. “Down that aisle, look for Carson’s Lodge.”   
“Thank you,” said Mr. Hughes before the group walked towards the aisle.   
“Wait, they’re using hills as ski slopes now?” asked Sunny. Red, on the other hand, had a different question pop into mind.   
“Sunny, be quiet,” said Roy, “and help us look.”   
“Why don’t they just put this all on the internet?” asked Sunny as he opened a drawer.   
Roy sighed as he flipped through the contents of a drawer. “Because they did, Sunny. It’s a good back-up to have in case the power goes out and you need some information, or if, somehow, all that information got deleted. The internet also serves as a back-up in case this should ever be burned down.”   
“Ah, good point,” said Sunny. The four worked in silence for several minutes until Mr. Hughes let out a whoop.   
“I think I’ve found it!” he exclaimed, waving the paper around. They caught a glimpse of the words Carson’s Lodge before Mr. Hughes swept past them and walked quickly back to the desk. The clerk was off the phone and smiled cheerily at them.   
“You found it, huh?” asked the clerk. Mr. Hughes placed the paper down on the counter. The clerk nodded. “Yup, that’s it.” He got out a notepad and a pen and wrote the address down. There was already another address on the piece of paper that he tore off the pad and handed to Mr. Hughes. “There you go. Good luck in your search!”   
“Well, um, thank you!” said Mr. Hughes. “That was, that was rather quick.”  
Red stepped forward, so he wasn’t the only one who noticed. “How did you know exactly where they were?” he asked.   
The clerk grinned sheepishly. “Because my friend was looking for the exact same information. See, he’s Vincent Steele, and he’s writing the movie for Giovanni Russo. So I’ve been helping him with the research.”   
“Whoa,” said Sunny.   
“Please don’t give anyone else his address,” said the clerk, “he really doesn’t like having his privacy invaded.”   
Mr. Hughes held up his hand. “We promise, and who knows, we might not need it. See, we’re supposed to be talking to Mr. Steele about the movie as well, he might even invite us to his house and we really wouldn’t need it.”   
“Well, you have it, just the same. I wish you the best of luck in your search!”   
“Oh, real quick,” said Roy. “Do you know the address of Miguel Jiminez?”   
The clerk rubbed his chin. “I do think Vince and I looked for it, but we couldn’t find that. You just might have to travel up and down the river until you find him.” The clerk shrugged. “Sorry.”   
Roy sighed. “No, that’s fine. Thank you.”   
“Yes, thank you, and thank you very, very much again for all your help!” The five waved and said goodbye before Mr. Hughes, Red, Roy, and Sunny left the office.   
Sunny chuckled as he pulled out of the lot. “Looks like we should just go straight to Mr. Steele, it seems he would have all the information we need.”   
“Well, almost all of it,” said Roy, “we might have to help each other out on pinpointing the exact location of the Adalante and finding Mr. Jiminez.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “Right, but first, to continue our discussion from before.” Mr. Hughes went into deeper detail about fencing rules, what was considered foul, what to look for in a cheating opponent, how to score points, how many points one could get in a match, and so forth and so on. By the time they got back to the construction site, both Sunny’s and Red’s heads were spinning with all the new information. Since they were a few minutes early, Mr. Hughes proceeded to show them a few basic moves with an imaginary foil, but when five o’clock rolled around, they were walking into the construction site. They paused and gasped.   
Sunny pointed at the building. “What? It’s still up?”   
Harry Madsen, Jim Emory, and a third man were waiting for them by the bulldozer. Jim shot them an apologetic smile. “Yes, sorry about that. As soon as you left my boss called and told me to put it off even longer. Sounds like you’re not the only one interested in this old building.”   
Mr. Hughes chuckled. “Yes, so we’ve found out. We went to the county clerk and he was just recently asked about it too. It’s in fact someone we’re supposed to talk to tomorrow, so I hope we’ll get to start working together from then on out.”   
Harry eyed them suspiciously. “Who?”   
Mr. Hughes shook his head. “Unfortunately, I can’t tell you, that’s not what I’m here for either way. Shall we begin our duel so you can get home faster after bulldozing?”   
Harry growled. “Fine.” He handed Mr. Hughes a foil and gloves.   
“Wait, no mask?” asked Roy.   
Harry shrugged. “Didn’t see the need for it.”   
The third man rolled his eyes. “Yes, and like I’ve told you Harry, if you dare aim for his face, he automatically wins. Same goes for him, if he aims for your face, you automatically win.”  
“Whatever you say, Amos.”   
Amos sighed and introduced himself as Amos Cain, the maestro of the fencing school where Harry trained and said that he would be the bout director. Mr. Hughes introduced himself and his team and asked that Roy be the judge. Amos agreed when he found out that Roy knew the rules quite well. But his reaction upon hearing the name of Reginald Hughes was unforgettable to Red. His eyes had widened before a knowing grin began to form on his face. “Nice to meet you all.” He glanced at Red and Sunny. “I hope you two pay close attention and can learn a thing or two about fencing.” He turned to Mr. Hughes. “And I hope you have them learn.”   
Mr. Hughes smiled back. “I think I shall. But first, shall we begin?”   
Amos gave a little bow. “We shall. Let me mark the arena, and we can.” Amos drew a six by forty foot rectangle in the dirt and Harry and Mr. Hughes stood at opposite ends of the box. “Begin!” Harry and Mr. Hughes did a couple of rounds doing some light parries to get a feel for the foils before really getting into it. Red’s and Sunny’s mouths dropped open, watching with pure awe and thrill. Mr. Hughes looked rather graceful as he side-stepped Harry’s attacks or parried them with ease. Based on the little he did know about fencing, Red could tell that Mr. Hughes was confident, experienced, and sure-footed. Harry seemed clumsy and inexperienced in comparison, even though it was obvious he was well-trained too. Red knew he would have never beaten Harry and was very very grateful that Mr. Hughes stepped up to the plate.   
“Point! To Reginald Hughes!” called out Amos when Mr. Hughes touched Harry with the point of his blade. Harry let out a growl and lunged low, but Mr. Hughes sidestepped him.   
“Hey!’ shouted Sunny. “That wasn’t fair!”   
“That is a fowl,” said Roy.   
“But considering he completely missed him, I think we can let that slide,” said Amos. Roy looked at him in shock, but only he and Red noticed the slow wink.   
Roy slowly smiled. “I, I think I see where you’re coming from and agree.”   
Amos nodded. “I thought you might.”   
They went at it for two more rounds, Mr. Hughes won all three, even with Harry trying to cheat.   
“H-h-how?’ asked Harry between gulps of air. “How are you so good?”   
“Well, my young padawan, if you looked at the fencing circles and learned about the greatest men, you would know that you are currently standing on the property of Giovanni Russo.”   
“I knew that!” spat out Harry.   
“Then you would also know that his grandson, Ettore Russo, is one of the finest fencing tutors in America.” Amos paused and grinned at Mr. Hughes. “And Reginald Hughes is one of his top pupils.”   
Harry’s eyes bulged as his mouth dropped and stared in shock at Mr. Hughes. Roy, Sunny, and Red were grinning widely. Roy nodded. “That’s right, and I’ve had the pleasure of a few lessons from him as well. But I’m not as advanced as Mr. Hughes.”   
Harry straightened up, looking very apologetic. “I am so so sorry, Mr. Hughes, I . . .”   
Mr. Hughes patted his back. “Don’t worry about it. Just let this be a reminder to not take money from men who want you to kill someone else, got it?”   
Harry nodded fervently. “Yes sir.”   
“Who hired you, anyway?” asked Roy.   
Harry shrugged. “I don’t know, I didn’t get his name. He sounded and looked foreign, that’s all I could really tell you.”  
“Well, good, thank you for telling us that much. And I will say it was a pleasure to duel you, you’re pretty good, but I think you can get better,” said Mr. Hughes as he handed Harry back his gloves and foil.   
Harry smiled, a genuine smile. “Thank you, Mr. Hughes! It was a pleasure to duel you as well, though . . . I wish it wasn’t because of my foolishness.”   
“Well, I hope you learn from this and maybe we’ll duel another time, maybe when you’ve gotten better, huh?” Mr. Hughes winked.   
Harry grinned. “I’d like that.”   
“Good, now, if you don’t mind, I know you’re going to meet who I hope is our future friend in this search. I would like to stay around, but we do have to meet someone at the airport in Sacramento. So we shall say ciao.”   
“Ciao!” chorused everyone and waved. Sunny pulled out his phone at that moment and glanced at the time.   
He yelped. “Yikes! We’ve gotta head out now if we’re going to meet Lloyd!” The four dashed to the car and jumped in. Sunny started the car and took off. They made it in time and picked up Lloyd, everyone filling him in on all the action while they drove back to the hotel and got their supper. But the entire time, Red’s thought turned to the one problem they had. Who was out to kill them?


	9. On a Movie Set

Lloyd was upset that he missed the duel. He so wanted to see Mr. Hughes win his first dueling match, and the others didn’t think of recording it either. Mr. Hughes promised him that he would make absolutely sure that Lloyd would be present for the next duel. Lloyd had to be satisfied with that.   
“So, what’s the plan now?” asked Lloyd. They were sitting in the hotel room that he was going to share with Red and Sunny eating Italian food, in honor of Signor Russo.   
“Well,” said Mr. Hughes after he finished chewing a bite of chicken parmesan, “we’re supposed to meet Gene Zellers and Vincent Steele at the movie shoot tomorrow morning.”  
“This is going to be so awesome!” Sunny whispered excitedly.   
Mr. Hughes pointed at him. “And you are going to keep quiet about all of this. Vincent Steele does in fact like to keep his private life private. He only writes screenplays because he’s good at it and he likes it, he was never in it for the publicity, and we are going to respect his wishes, understand?” he said firmly but gently.   
Sunny bobbed his head. “Yes sir.” Red and Lloyd nodded instinctively.   
“Thank you,” said Mr. Hughes. He straightened up and took another bite while he thought a minute. “Now that that’s cleared up, the first plan of action is to see if Mr. Steel wouldn’t mind working with us in finding the Adalante.” But Red had a thought. There was a piece of the puzzle that didn’t seem to fit, much less seem necessary. He raised his hand. “Yes Red?”   
“Do we really need to see Miguel Jiminez? I don’t quite see how he would be able to help us in finding the Adalante. There’s only two other places it could be, we can narrow it down to the final resting place rather quickly.”   
Mr. Hughes winced. “Yeah, you are right on that point, we don’t need the information he has to find the Adalante. But, I think both Ettore and I’m sure Mr. Steele too, would like to know what he knows. See, Ettore suspects that the woman his grandfather had a fling with was being pursued by Miguel Jiminez Senior, hence the whole battle. He might have the information on the illegitimate heir we’ll need, especially if this illegitimate heir is in fact behind all this and not Fabrizio Dente.”   
Roy nodded. “If he does have that information, we could round up the whole gang much faster.”   
“So when would we go out to see him?”   
Mr. Hughes shrugged. “We’ll see how things go on the movie set and go from there. Like I said, Mr. Steele might want to talk to him too, get his ancestor’s side of the story.”   
“But I thought scripts were written long before the movie started shooting?” said Red slowly.   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “They are, Mr. Steele seems to be interested in the history of Ettore’s grandfather. He interviewed him a few times over the phone so they wouldn’t meet, and that was a while ago.”   
Roy nodded. “And I hope that Mr. Steele has the rest of the information we might need, besides the holes that Mr. Jiminez can fill in. He has been researching this for a while now.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded with a sigh. “It certainly sounds like it.” He stood up and threw his paper plate away in the trash. “Well, we’ve got a bit of time to relax. I suggest you do so. It seems, based on how today was, we won’t have much time to relax until we’ve found the hilt of the Adalante.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “And we don’t know exactly how many people that we have to deal with, so we really have to rush this.” He placed his hands on his hips and shrugged. “So, you’re free to do whatever you want. But if you want me, I’ll be in the pool.” With that, he walked out of the room.   
Roy quickly finished eating and followed him out, leaving the other three to finish their meal. Lloyd begged for a recap of the duel and Sunny willingly obliged. Red kept mostly quiet, only adding a little tidbit here and there. He chewed thoughtfully. Would an illegitimate heir actually want Signor Russo dead? Could it be a kind of revenge for Giovanni Russo not naming them as heir? Would telling them that Giovanni looked for them change things? There were so many variables that it was starting to make Red feel a little dizzy. But the main thought that Red kept going back to was, did Fabrizio change his tactics to get to the hilt before his cousin? Or if it was just his goons, why would they change tactics?   
Red eventually pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind as the three decided to join Mr. Hughes in the pool. They changed into swim trunks and grabbed some towels before heading over. They were slightly surprised to see Roy was lounging away in the pool too, but when they got in, they quickly figured out why. The water was perfect. They all swam for a little bit before just sitting in floating chairs and relaxing. There were only the sounds of the cars passing by the hotel and some chatter from other guests and they walked around. Despite all that, it seemed like a peaceful moment, so peaceful that Red’s eyelids began to droop. For a brief moment, everything seemed at peace.  
The very next moment, Red found himself being shaken awake by Sunny. He woke up with a gasp. “What, what’s going on?”   
Sunny just grinned. “You fell asleep, that’s what. Come on, it’s ten, we should get you up to bed.” Red glanced around at the pool as Sunny helped him out. The others were already gone. It was much quieter now, just the crickets chirping away in the still night air. Red let Sunny lead him back to their room where they found Lloyd sound asleep. “We’ve already taken showers. If you want to take one yourself, I suggest you make it quick. Like I said, it’s ten now.”   
Red grinned sheepishly. “Well, considering I’ve already had a nap, I think I can stay up a little longer.”   
Sunny chuckled. “Fair enough. I’ll see you in the morning then.”   
“Thanks Sunny. Good night.”   
“Night!” Sunny got into bed while Red quickly grabbed his pajamas and a clean pair of underwear and went into the bathroom. He took a quick shower and got into his pajamas. He crawled into bed and laid there for a few minutes. As he was drifting off to sleep again, more disturbing thoughts entered his mind. How did they know they were going to be at the construction site at that time? Would they be dealing with any problems at the movie set tomorrow? Were they bringing the danger to them?   
Everyone was up bright and early the next morning and swooped downstairs to get some breakfast that the hotel was serving before congregating in the room shared by Mr. Hughes and Roy. Red revealed his late night musings.   
Roy nodded. “I had wondered about that too, and I’ve looked into it, but I couldn’t find anything. We’re definitely not being tapped, that’s for sure. What’s more likely is we’re being followed.”   
Mr. Hughes rubbed his chin. “Which could mean we might have to split up, even if just to see if there’s just one person following us, or more. Heck, we might be able to capture them if there are more than one and we split them up.”   
Roy waved his hand in a so-so motion. “Maybe, maybe not. But if we do have an opportunity to capture anyone, we should take it. It would definitely better our chances.”   
“But then if we are being followed . . . why are we being targeted like this?” asked Red. “The bad guys like to let the good guys do all the hard work and then swoop in and take the treasure.”  
Lloyd let out a chuckle. “Sounds to me like these bad guys aren’t that smart.”   
“Which may end up working in our favor,” said Roy. “We might be able to capture them quite easily.”   
“That would be really nice,” said Sunny. “I don’t like my life being threatened, nor the lives of my friends.”   
“Aw, you think of me as a friend?” said Lloyd.   
“No, your life wasn’t in danger,” retorted Sunny. He stuck his tongue out when Lloyd let out a surprised gasp.   
“How rude!” Lloyd picked up a pillow, but Mr. Hughes’s arm shot out and grabbed his arm.   
“Not right now, and especially not here.” He gave him a glare until Lloyd put down the pillow and gave him an apologetic smile. “Thank you. Now, hurry up and finish eating, we need to be at the movie studio by ten.”   
“Yes sir!” chorused Sunny and Lloyd enthusiastically before chomping down the rest of their breakfast. Red ate almost as quickly, he was mulling over the notion of being followed, a notion that slightly concerned him. Had they been followed to Sacramento as well? Would they be followed everywhere? The mere thought of looking out the rearview mirror and seeing a car following them everywhere spooked him. He really hoped those chances would come to where they could catch those crooks. He had a feeling they wouldn’t be safe until they did.   
When ten o’clock rolled around, Sunny was pulling into the parking lot of a lovely vineyard. They could already see the tell-tale signs of a movie crew, with the unmistakeable movie star trailers and camera equippment. People were walking around, some were making sure the cameras were rolling and facing the right direction, others were going over scripts, yet still others were moving props back and forth.   
“Mr. Hughes?”   
“Yes Sunny?”   
“I need to let out a little excitement, and then I’m good.”   
Mr. Hughes sighed, but he was grinning. “Oh, very well Sunny, but make it quick.”   
“Yes sir.” Sunny took a deep breath, and let out a giant squeal, startling Red. Sunny paid him no mind and bounced in his seat for about a minute before placing his hands back on the wheel and letting out a breath. “OK, I’m good. Let’s go.”   
Mr. Hughes laughed. “Good.” The five got out of the car and walked towards one of the people running around. Mr. Hughes tapped him on the shoulder. The fellow turned, and his eyes widened.   
“R-Reginald Hughes!”   
Mr. Hughes smiled. “Ah, good, then I don’t need to introduce myself. I am looking for Gene Zellers. Can you tell him we’re here, or at least point us in the right direction?”   
“I’ll do you one better,” said the fellow, “I’ll take you to him!”   
“Why thank you very much!” said Mr. Hughes. The group followed the guy to one of the larger trailers. The guy knocked on the door before opening it and ushering them in. “Mr. Zellers?”   
“What?” grumbled a voice. Two men had their backs to them. But Red could tell from the back of one that he was the renowned director, Gene Zellers. Red figured the other man must be Vincent Steele.   
“Reginald Hughes and his party are here!” exclaimed the man, excitement making his pitch rise.   
Gene Zellers turned around and his eyes widened before he burst into a grin. “Why, it is! Welcome, Reginald, welcome!”   
Mr. Hughes stepped forward and shook Gene’s hand heartily. “It’s good to see you Gene! We seem to have come at a bad time?”   
Gene sighed, the smile disappearing. “It’s . . . not quite a bad time to talk about the movie. It’s just that . . .”   
“We’ve had a lot of accidents!” blurted the fellow who led them to the trailer.   
Gene let out an even more sad sigh. “Yes, and one of our best fencers was injured just this morning. It’s not life-threatening, thank God, but it’s a major setback.”   
Mr. Hughes frowned. “That is bad news.”   
“Reginald, do you think I could persuade you to stand in for today? I just need a fencer for a few shots today, my regular guy can take the rest once he’s better.”   
Mr. Hughes winced. “Well, we are looking for Adalante for Ettore Russo . . .”   
“You are?” asked the third man in the room.   
Mr. Hughes smiled at him. “Yes . . . Mr. Steele, I presume?”   
The thinning blonde head nodded slowly. “I am.”   
Mr. Hughes stepped forward and held out his hand. “A pleasure to meet you, sir. I am under the assumption that you have a lot of information on the Adalante.”   
“I do, but I am still continuing my research. It seems there’s a lot I still don’t know about. Especially about Miguel Jiminez.”   
Roy stepped forward with a soft, almost smug grin. “That, I believe we can help you with. We have found a relative who still lives in Stockton.”   
Vincent rose from the table, his eyes wide. “Really?”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “Absolutely. We were planning on going to visit him later today. Would you like to join us? I have reserved a boat for us for the rest of the week.”   
Vincent shook his head. “No, I’m not comfortable around boats. But if you could write down everything he tells you, that would be fabulous!”   
“Then maybe I can persuade you to share some of the information you have found out with us?”   
Vincent smiled. “I have no problem with that.”   
“And is there a way I can persuade you be the fencer for these scenes today?” asked Gene.   
Mr. Hughes puffed up his cheeks before letting out some air. He paused and blinked before shooting Gene a sly grin. “Actually, I think you can. See, we think we’re being followed, and if you could have your crew on the lookout for anyone suspicious, that would be fabulous.”   
Gene grinned and gave him a thumbs up. “You got it, Reginald.” His face fell. “But, uh, does that mean someone else besides you and Vincent are looking for this hilt?”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “And they mean business, Gene.”   
Gene let out a huff. “Well, alright then, we’ll keep an out.” He glanced at the fellow who led them there. “Jeff, go spread the word, and get out three leads please? I need to see if there are any changes that need to be made for Reginald to take this part.”   
Jeff saluted him. “Yes sir!”   
Sunny raised his hand. “May we go with him?”   
Mr. Hughes sighed. “Alright, but remember what I said.”   
“Yes sir!” chorused the three before dashing after Jeff. When they caught up to him, he began to explain some of the pieces they saw and what people were doing. They finally ended up at a building on the property that was being used as a sort of mesh hall. They entered the place, and heard a woman scream.   
“Oh no, that’s one of the leads!” exclaimed Jeff, his eyes widening. “We can’t afford another set-back!” The four rushed to the kitchen area. They burst through, and all four gasped at the scene before them. There was Diane White, holding a knife dripping with something red!


	10. Splitting Up

“M-Miss White!” exclaimed Sunny.  
“What the?” exclaimed Lloyd. Red blinked in surprise, what was she doing here?   
White let out a soft squeal and waved. “Why Red, Sunny, Lloyd, it’s so good to see you!” She glanced at the knife and the red goo pooling on the ground. “I just wished it wasn’t in this mess.” She grabbed a couple of napkins off a nearby table and began cleaning it up.   
Jeff, on the other hand, let out a sigh of relief. “Oh, Miss White, I thought something bad happened to you!” He grinned sheepishly. “Well, worse than the ketchup again.”   
“Again?” chorused Sunny, Lloyd, and Red.   
Jeff sighed as he stepped forward towards Miss White to help clean up the ketchup. “Yes, again, this ketchup container has been giving us problems ever since we first started the filming. Thankfully it’s not all day every day, but it’s enough that it’s become a regular occurrence.”   
“A very annoying one at that,” mumbled White. “I thought something was stuck in there and I tried to get it out with a knife.”   
Red raised an eyebrow as he picked up the knife. “With a chef’s knife?”   
“Well a plastic one wasn’t working,” said White with a huff, “and the others are in use. So the chef said I could use this, as long as I cleaned it.” She huffed. “And then this happened.”   
“We’ll help you clean up,” said Red as he began to help out as well. He glanced at Sunny and Lloyd. “Come on, guys, help out.”   
“Ugh,” said lloyd as he grabbed some napkins and began to clean up. Sunny grumbled and didn’t move an inch.   
“We do need our three main stars back at Mr. Zeller’s trailer as soon as possible,” pointed out Jeff.   
Sunny sighed as he came forward to help as well. “Fine.”  
White glanced at them in confusion. “Why’s that?”   
Lloyd huffed. “Because Mr. Zeller has cast Mr. Hughes in the role of the fencer until the actual fencer can act again.”   
“Really?” asked White, her pitch rising slightly.   
Sunny seemed to ignore her and turned to Jeff. “What did happen to the guy anyways?”   
Jeff let out a huff. “He was practising fencing out in the vineyard when he fell into a ditch and stabbed himself with his blade.”   
Both Red, Lloyd, and Sunny winced. “Oooh, ouch!”   
White waved her hand. “Yes yes, that was quite appalling. But what’ s this about Reginald stepping in for him?”   
Sunny groaned and rolled his eyes while Red nodded and replied. “Yes, Mr. Zeller asked Mr. Hughes to step in for today. And that’s why we’re here, we were asked to get you and the other two main stars of the movie. He wanted to be sure there wasn’t anything that needed changing before Mr. Hughes is officially given the part.”   
“Reginald is being given a part?” The four jumped and glanced up at the newcomer.   
Sunny groaned. “Miss Scarlet too? Who else is here? Does Mr. Mustard also have a role? Is Mr. Plum working with the electronics?”   
“Oh! You guessed Victor’s part!” said White.   
“It’s just us three, darling,” said Scarlet with a sly smirk.   
Sunny and Lloyd groaned. “Oh no!”   
“Well, if I was Eleanor, I’d tell you how rude you are, but I’m not, so I’ll let it slide,” said Scarlet. Lloyd rolled his eyes and Sunny just moaned.   
“But, at least this makes our search easier, these are two of the leading stars. We just need the third one,” said Jeff.   
“And who’s the third one?” mumbled Sunny.   
“Our leading man, of course,” said White with a flirty voice, “none other than Douglas Clark himself!”   
Lloyd gasped as his mouth dropped. “Say what?”   
Sunny’s mouth dropped at that announcement, all vehemence towards the two women seemed to vanish. “Douglas Clark? Th-the Douglas Clark?”   
White nodded. “The one and only!” She then pouted. “But Kasandra gets all the good scenes with him.”   
“Well of course, I play the dark-haired beauty he serenaded, which is what the end battle is all about, as I’m being pursued by two men,” she said with a fling of her dark locks.   
White let out a huff. “Yeah, and I’m playing the steady love interest . . . but I get him in the end.”   
“Only because he couldn’t have me, darling,” said Scarlet with a snide tone in her voice.   
Red rose, wiping his hands off with another napkin. “Well, I think that’s as clean as we’re going to get it. We need to hurry up and find Mr. Clark.”   
Sunny jumped up. “Yes!”   
Lloyd stood up and glanced at the knife that Red picked up again. “Yeah, let’s get out of here. They’re probably tired of waiting for us.”   
Jeff chuckled. “You do have a point. Mr. Clark is most likely in his trailer. Ladies, if you don’t mind following us?”   
Scarlet stroked his chin. “Oh I don’t mind at all.”   
Jeff chuckled nervously. “Well, alright then, let’s get a move on.” The group walked out, following Jeff to the trailer Mr. Clark occupied. As Jeff suspected, he was there, and was more than willing to come and meet Mr. Hughes. They quickly made their way back to Gene Zellers’ trailer.   
“Where in the world have you been?” snapped Gene, glancing at his watch. “It shouldn’t have taken you four that long.”   
“We’re so sorry, Mr. Zellers,” said White. “But I had a duel with the ketchup and lost. These boys were just being so helpful and helped me clean it all up.”   
Mr. Hughes stepped forward. “Diane? Kasandra? You’re two of the three stars?”   
“Oh no,” mumbled Roy.   
“Douglas Clark is the other!” exclaimed Sunny. He glanced at Roy. “But Victor Plum is here too, working on the electronics.”   
“Say what?” exclaimed Roy. The three men nodded.   
Vincent glanced between them and Mr. Hughes and Roy. “Wait, you actually know these people?”   
All five nodded. “Yes, we do,” said Mr. Hughes. He smiled at Mr. Clark and extended his hand. “Except for Mr. Douglas Clark. A pleasure to meet you sir.”   
Mr. Clark shook his hand. “And a pleasure to meet you, Reginald! Kasandra and Diane here have told me so much about you, I almost already know you!”   
Mr. Hughes chuckled nervously. “Then this should be easy.”   
“Well, now that the three of you are here, please stand near Mr. Hughes,” said Gene. The three crowded around Mr. Hughes in the small space, making it feel even smaller. Gene tapped his chin and he glanced over the four. He nodded. “Looking good, I think you’re just an inch taller, Reginald, but it will do. Not many people will notice that.” He held out his hand to Mr. Hughes. “You’ve got it.”   
Mr. Hughes shook his hand. “Thank you, Gene.”   
“No, thank you.” He glanced at the other three. “Alright, we’re going to shoot today. Time to get into position!”   
Mr. Hughes held up a hand. “Can you give me a second, Gene?”   
Gene nodded. “Of course, but a quick second alright?”   
Mr. Hughes smiled. “Of course.” He waited until the others had left before waving Red, Sunny, and Lloyd towards the table where Roy and Vincent still sat. He turned to Vincent. “May I ask a favor of you?”   
Vincent raised an eyebrow. “What is that?”   
“May Roy take your car or take them yourself to the car rental? They can go from there to look for Miguel Jiminez.”   
Vincent nodded. “Oh yes! I’ll take them myself. I want to give them the questions I want them to ask for my research.”   
Mr. Hughes smiled. “Perfect, thank you. Now, the show must go on.”   
“Wait, what?” said Lloyd.   
“Why are we renting a car?” said Sunny.   
“What’s going on?” said Red.   
Mr. Hughes pinted at them. “I want you three to talk to Miguel Jiminez and then come right back here, understand?”   
“Yes sir,” they chorused, before glancing at each other, still confused as to what was going on.   
“Thank you.” He turned to Vincent and held out his hand. “And many thanks to you.”   
Vincent stood up and shook his hand. “No, thank you! I shall see you tomorrow!”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “We shall. Until tomorrow.” He and Roy left the trailer.   
The boys turned to Vincent. “Are you going to answer our questions?” asked Lloyd hopefully.   
Vincent took off his glasses and wiped them off with a tiny cloth. “I can, but I think it would be best to tell you on the way. I need to get home soon.”   
“Oh, alright,” said Lloyd with a huff. The three followed Vincent Steele out the door and to his car. Once they were in the car and speeding off, did Vincent speak.   
“Reginald told me and Gene about your close call and what your mission is,” began Vincent. “I want to help you as much as possible. I’m not looking for the sword for anything else than just for research and the book I’m writing on Giovanni Russo.”   
“You wrote the screenplay for the movie but you haven’t published the book yet?” asked Red.   
“Well yes, Gene just needed a fictionalized version of all the information I already had, so it wasn’t too hard. But I still have to write the book, and I’m nearing my deadline, so the extra help is most appreciated. Speaking of,” he paused as they came to a stop at a red light. He pulled out a notebook from his dashboard and a pen and handed them to Red, who was sitting in the front seat. “I want you to ask him some questions. These might help you find the Adalante faster, but I just need this information to verify what happened between Miguel Jiminez and Giovanni Russo.”   
Red nodded. “Right.”   
The light turned green and Vincent returned his hands to the wheel as he pressed down the accelerator. “The main thing is finding out the story of Miguel Jiminez. How did he become a prominent gang leader? Was there another reason for his rivalry with Giovanni than Maria? Why did he come to Stockton? Things like that. If you can think of any more questions, then great, please ask them, but that’s the majority of what I’m looking for.”   
Red nodded. “We’ll get the answers, at least, if Miguel Jiminez Jr. actually knows those answers.”   
“He most likely will, but he might be vague on the details if he doesn’t have all of them.”   
Red nodded. “Fair point.”   
“Why are you telling him all that?” blurted Lloyd.   
“Because he’s in the front seat,” stated Vincent matter-of-factly.   
“Oh, right,” mumbled Lloyd.   
“Do you know what car we’re getting?” asked Sunny.   
“Reginald just said to give them his name and they would take you to it.”   
Sunny huffed and crossed his arms. “I hope it’s a good one.”   
Vincent chuckled. “I’m sure it is.”   
“Is there anything else we need to know?” asked Red.   
Vincent thought for a moment. “Not that I can think of. Oh wait, Roy did say to check out the post office first before hitting the river. They might have a quick way to find Mr. Jiminez’s house, since they have to deliver to him.”   
“Right,” said Red with a nod.  
“Oh, and make absolutely, positively sure that no one follows you. But if someone does, try to catch them and/or get them to the police station. The faster you can get these crooks off your backs, the better.”   
“No kidding,” muttered Sunny.   
Vincent pulled into the parking lot of the car rental. He turned to his passengers. “Well, here we are. You remember those questions?”   
Red nodded. “Yes sir, just find out what we can about Miguel Jiminez’s side of the story.”   
Vincent nodded. “Yes, pretty much. Well, I wish the best of luck to you and I look forward to seeing you tomorrow!” He reached out his hand and shook hands with each of the boys.   
“Thanks! See you tomorrow!” they chorused before getting out of the car. They watched him leave before walking into the lobby and approached the receptionist’s desk.   
“Hello,” said Sunny, giving the woman at the desk a smile. “We’re here to pick up a car for Mr. Reginald Hughes.”   
The woman smiled back. “Oh yes! He told me you were coming!” She turned around and took a key out of a file drawer. She stood up and stepped out from behind the desk. “If you’ll follow me please.” She led them out to the yard and between a few rows before stopping in front of a brown, four-door Ford. “Here you are.” She handed the key to Sunny.   
He smiled at her. “Thanks!”   
“You’re welcome!” She walked back into the lobby.   
Sunny turned back to the car and huffed. “Well, this isn’t Anika, but it will have to do. Not bad, though.” He unlocked the car.   
Red blinked as Sunny and Lloyd got in. “Wait, what?” He dove into the back and quickly buckled in. “Anika?”   
Lloyd turned in his seat and grinned at him. “Yup, Sunny named all the cars.”   
Red thought back to Signor Russo’s quip about sword names being older than car names. “Oh, oh right.”   
“Don’t sound too surprised man, it’s actually pretty common,” said Sunny with a chuckle as he started up the engine. “Well, let’s head over to the post office and get this over with. We can trust Roy, but when he’s got Scarlet, White, and Plum on the set too?”   
“Yeah, he’s going to need back-up real fast if anything goes down,” said Lloyd.   
“And I think they’re the least of our worries,” said Red. The other two glanced at him in the rearview mirror. “We still have those goons to handle.”   
Sunny nodded. “Another reason to get this over and done with quickly.” He backed out of the lot and the three were on their way to find Miguel Jiminez.


	11. Down the River

Red, Sunny, and Lloyd went straight away to the post office, as Mr. Hughes suggested. They asked the clerk about finding Miguel Jiminez.   
She eyed them. “Why do you need to find Miguel Jiminez?”   
“We’re supposed to interview him,” said Red, “and we can’t find his address. We were told to ask here first.”   
“Oh OK, you’ve got a boat?”   
“Yes ma’am,” said Red with a nod of his head.   
“Alright then.” She reached under the desk and pulled out a map. She spread it out. “I know you have GPS on your phone, but we’ve found that the reception out there can be spotty, so we rely on the old fashioned way of getting around.”   
Sunny grinned at Lloyd. “Good thing we’re good with maps.”   
Lloyd scoffed. “But knowing my luck, you’re going to get to pilot the boat.”   
Red glanded between them. “Is this a common thing?”   
Sunny shrugged. “We always flip a coin for it.”   
“And you manage to win every time, ‘said Lloyd.   
Red rolled his eyes. “If you two keep arguing about it, I’m going to pilot the boat.” He turned back to the clerk. “I apologise. As you were saying?”   
She let out a huff. “I should say sorry to you. I don’t have to deal with that.”   
Red chuckled nervously. “Well, I’m going to have to. So, Miguel Jiminiez?”   
She nodded and pointed to the river on the map. “If you follow the river up to about here, you’ll get to Miguel Jiminez’s house.”   
“Are there any defining features that will help us pick it out from the rest?” asked Red.   
She shrugged. “Sorry, I couldn’t tell you with that, I’m not the one who goes out there delivering mail. That would be Herbert Shay’s department.” She ran her finger up the river. “And you should run into him along the way. If you need help, look for him first. You can ask around of course, but Herbert knows this river like the back of his hand.”   
Red smiled. “We’ll be sure to keep that in mind. Thanks for all your help.”  
She smiled as she folded up the map. “Of course! I hope the interview goes well.”   
“So do we, but I think we’re more worried about getting there than the interview going badly,” quipped Lloyd.   
The clerk chuckled. “That is true. Good luck!”   
“Thanks!” the boys chorused with a wave. Lloyd saw a free map of the area in the magazine rack and grabbed it before following the other two out. They got back into the car and drove to the boat rental. They told the clerk there that they were picking up a boat under the name of Reginald Hughes and were directed to a nice motor boat. They thanked the clerk and set about getting the boat ready to go. Sunny pulled out a plastic bag for their phones, wallets, and the notebook Mr. Steele gave them. Once everything was set up, they put on their life vests. Then the coin came out.   
“Heads I steer, tails you steer,” said Sunny.   
“Hey Sunny?” said Red.   
“Uh, yeah?”   
“Can Lloyd steer a boat as well as you can drive, and I can pilot?”   
Sunny glanced between him and Lloyd. “Uh, yeah.”   
“Well, why don’t you let him steer the boat. You already do the driving and I do the piloting, let him have a turn at a wheel.”   
Sunny huffed. “Oh, alright.” He turned to Lloyd. “We await your orders, Captain.”   
Lloyd grinned. “Thank you.” He sat down in the driver’s seat before turning to Red. “And you’re not half bad.”   
“Glad I’ve meet your approval,” said Red. Lloyd chuckled before turning on the boat. After they got their bearings, they were speeding off down the river. Red and Sunny had the map spread out on the dashboard.   
“Hmm,” said Sunny, “looks like we’re going to come into a portion of the river that’s almost big enough to be a lake before we get to the area where Mr. Jiminez’s house is supposed to be.”   
“Good,” said Lloyd, “at least we’ll know we’re on the right track once we get there.”   
“Yeah,” said Red. He glanced at the scenery with a soft smile. This wasn’t Hawaii, but he had learned how to man a boat long before he was allowed to take flying lessons. Being back on the water gave him nostalgic feelings, and a hint of homesickness. He had been going from one thing to another and hadn’t given it much thought since arriving in California. But now, it was starting to rear its ugly head. He let it rise for a bit, he couldn’t deny that he missed his family and his friends back home. Well, those who were still in Hawaii at least, some had moved away like he had. Maybe they were feeling homesick like he was right now, or they were just enjoying the adventure of being in a new place and the homesickness wouldn’t set in until later.   
But the homesickness, the nostalgia, the curiosity about his friends, it all seemed to come to a screeching halt when Red happened to glance behind them. Another boat was behind them with a lone man at the helm. Sure, they were on a river and people had to get to their homes somehow, but something about the way the boat was matching their speed sent alarms ringing in Red’s head.   
“Uh, guys, don’t look now, but I think we’re being followed.”   
Sunny and Lloyd glanced behind, Lloyd only for a second to keep an eye on the river. “What?” exclaimed Sunny. He glanced at Red. “I thought Mr. Hughes got us the rental so we wouldn’t be followed!”   
“I mean, I could be wrong, but there’s just something off about the way that guy is coming behind us.”  
Sunny turned back to the map. “Well, there’s one way to find out. We could go down one of the side rivers or circle back around in the lake. Well, actually, landing might be a better way of seeing if he’s following us, because he’ll land and follow us.”   
Red turned back to the map. “What if we tried all three? We’re going to have to shake him somehow too.”   
“Whatever we’re going to do, we’d better decide now, that lake part is coming up fast!” said Lloyd.   
Red scanned the map. “Let’s do all three. You’re going to have to slow down when we get into the lake so he can catch up. Then turn at the opposite side, and come back to this side river. We’ll go up it a ways before landing and finding someplace to hide. It looks like it’s just one guy, we can take him.”   
“Unless he has a gun,” mumbled Sunny.   
“We split up then, so someone else can come from behind and knock it out of his hands.”   
Lloyd grinned at Red. “Man, you just keep getting better and better.” He turned back to look out the window. “Let’s do this.” He sped up the boat a little bit. Sunny and Red watched the boat behind them lagged for a bit, and then sped up.   
“Well, that’s one way of saying ‘I’m following you’,” quipped Sunny.   
“Part two is coming up,” said Lloyd as they entered the lake part of the river. He slowed down, and the boat behind them began to slow down as well.   
“Looks like your hunch was right,” Sunny told Red.   
“I almost wish it wasn’t,” mumbled Red.   
“I know man, but I’m glad you noticed it, otherwise we would have led him straight to Miguel Jiminez,” pointed out Lloyd.   
“But what I want to know is, why follow us, though?” said Red. “We’re mainly going to be talking to Mr. Jiminez, it’s not like he has the Adalante.”   
“You can’t always know what these guys are thinking,” mumbled Sunny. “Guess we’ll just have to capture him and find out.”   
“Hang on, I’m turning around!” said Lloyd. Red and Sunny grabbed a hold of the railing right before Lloyd took a sharp turn at the mouth of the river. They circled back towards the side river Red had pointed out on the map. Lloyd slowed down so the guy could pass them up, but then they noticed that the guy’s tactics had changed. He was now coming straight at them!   
“Evasive maneuvers!” shouted Sunny. Lloyd tried to turn the boat to move out of the way, but he was too late. The other boat rammed into them and turned their boat on its side. The three fell into the lake with yells. When they came back up to the surface, their adversary was nowhere in sight.   
Lloyd splashed some water angrily. “Go figure! The coward!”   
Red sighed. “Help me right the boat, will you, before it sinks? We can at least try to continue on to Mr. Jiminez’s house, and this time we won’t be followed.”   
“Fine,” mumbled Lloyd. The three managed to right the boat and climbed back on board.   
Sunny glanced at their sopping clothes. “I don’t know about you, but I’d rather conduct an interview in dry clothes.”   
Lloyd nodded. “I do too.”   
“Well, that beach over there looks like it’s got enough sun to dry us off real quick.” Red shrugged. “We could even see if there’s a house nearby and ask to use their dryer.”   
“That’s actually a good idea,” said Sunny. “And who knows, if we don’t find a house, we might be dry enough when we get back to the boat to head to Mr. Jiminez’s house.” He held up the map. It was just as soaked as they were. “And maybe find a new map while we’re at it.”   
“And guys, maybe we shouldn’t mention anything about Mr. Steele,” said Red. “If he likes his privacy, we should let him keep it.”   
Sunny nodded. “Yeah, I guess we can just say he’s a friend of Mr. Hughes, or something.”   
Lloyd turned the boat towards the shore. “Alright then, and beach front, here we come.” Sunny jumped off the boat when they got close enough and tethered the boat to a nearby palm while Red dropped the anchor. The three made their way across the beach, hoping to find a house. Lloyd, who was in the lead, walked around a dune and gasped. Red and Sunny jogged to catch up. When they turned the corner, they too gasped. There were three girls sunbathing! One of them, the brunette, sat up and propped her sunglasses atop her head.   
“Well, look at this! Neptune and two of his mermen are paying us a visit!”   
Lloyd grinned. “Looks like we’re the ones in luck!”   
The blonde scoffed. “Think again pal. This is a girls’ camp, no boys allowed.” But her green eyes sparkled with mischief.   
“Sorry about that,” said Red. “We had an accident and got thrown into the sea.”   
The redhead clucked her tongue. “That’s too bad. Is the boat alright?”   
“For the most part, it was just more of an annoyance than anything particularly bad,” said Sunny. “For which I’m glad, the boat’s a rental.”   
“Yeah, I wouldn’t want anything to happen to a rental either,” quipped the brunette. “But who are you anyways?”   
“I’m Lord Neptune, I mean, Lloyd McGorman. And my trusty mermen are Robert Randall and Aadav Swarna, but most people just call them Red and Sunny.” He grinned. “And who do we have the pleasure of addressing?”   
The blonde giggled. “I’m Suzie Wade.” She pointed to the brunette. “That’s Kay Dover.” She pointed to the redhead. “And that’s June Fall.”   
The boys blinked. “So, June’s a lovely name and all,” began Sunny.   
“But June’s in summer, not fall, I know, shut up,” said June.   
Sunny saluted. “Yes ma’am.”   
“But it is a pleasure to meet you all,” said Lloyd. “That being said, and even though this is a girls’ camp, um, you wouldn’t happen to have a dryer we can use to dry our clothes?”   
Kay snickered. “You do look pretty sad. Come on, even though you are boys, I’m sure the Murrays will be more than willing to help.” She stood up.   
“Who are they?” asked Red.   
“They own the camp,” was Kay’s reply. The three girls led them to a large building surrounded by small cottages.   
“Hey, this place is actually kind of cute,” said Lloyd, glancing around.   
Kay smiled. “Thanks, we think so too.” The girls led them into the main building where they were introduced to the Murrays and informed them of the situation.   
Mrs. Murray threw up her hands in mock horror. “You’re just finding boys everywhere!” But she quickly produced three pairs of swim trunks for the boys to change into so she could dry their clothes.   
“So you’re going to be interviewing Miguel Jiminez, huh?” asked Mr. Murray.   
Red nodded. “Yes sir. We were given a map and directions, but unfortunately our map got just as wet as we did.”   
“Yeah, well, it would be best to talk to Herbert about finding it.”   
“Yeah, it would, if we can find him!” said Sunny.   
Mr. Murray grinned. “Oh that’s easy. He comes here at two o’clock sharp. You can ask him then.”   
Lloyd threw a fist in the air and let out a whoop. “This accident proved more useful than annoying!” The others laughed.  
Red nodded. “Yes, this proved to be very providential for us.” He smiled at the Murrays. “And thank you so so much for helping us out!”   
“Oh of course!” said Mrs. Murray “You had a little accident, there’s no need to turn you away or anything, even if you are boys. How about while you wait, you have lunch with us?”   
“Oh, we don’t want to impose,” began Red.   
Mr. Murray shook his head. “You're not imposing at all! Come on, we don’t mind the extra company.” He then grinned widely and winked. “And I know for sure the girls won’t.”   
Suzie giggled. “No we won’t.” She grabbed Lloyd’s arm. “Come on!”   
Kay grabbed Sunny’s arm and June grabbed Red’s. “It would be a breath of fresh air, that’s for sure,” said June.   
The boys glanced at each other. “Oh, alright,” they chorused and let their hosts take them to the dining hall. They ate and the boys talked about working for Reginald Hughes and explained that they were doing this for a friend. If Mr. Hughes wanted to respect Mr. Steele’s privacy, as employees of Mr. Hughes, so should they. It proved to be rather fun.   
At two o’clock sharp, the boys’ clothes were dry and Herbert Shay had shown up with the daily mail. Mr. Murray explained the situation to him.   
Herbert turned to the boys. “Sure! I can tell you where Miguel Jiminez’s place is! There’s a lagoon a couple miles northwest of here, he’s the only one there. I can even show you the entrance to the lagoon real quick, if you’d like.”   
“Won’t that put you behind?” asked Red.   
Herbert waved his hand dismissively. “Nah, it’s not that far, trust me.”   
“Well thank you, thank you very much!” The boys said goodbye to the girls and the Murrays before following Herbert back to the boats. He took a quick look over their boat to make sure they wouldn’t be caught out in the lagoon before climbing on board his and taking off. Lloyd was able to keep up easily. Herbert paused at a side river just past the mouth of the river.   
“Here you go!” he shouted. “This river just takes you straight to the lagoon! And today’s a great day for it! But if it starts to get foggy, you’d better hightail it out of there, it’s easier to get stuck in that lagoon in the fog than out here on the river. Best of luck to you!”   
“Thank you!” the boys chorused. They waved to Herbert as he turned around and went back to his route. Lloyd sped the boat on the little river, slowing down when they got to the lagoon.   
“Well, that looks like it,” said Sunny, pointing out a single boathouse tethered to a tree. Lloyd beached the boat and the trio made their way to the boathouse. A tiger-striped feline came to the boathouse from the opposite direction and walked up its plank.   
“Interesting-looking cat,” said Sunny, “did he name it Tiger?” He grinned.   
“Seems like a fitting name,” said Lloyd.   
The three paused within a few feet from the plank as a loud screech rang out followed by a very shrill “Get out! Get out!”


	12. Miguel Jiminez's Story

“B-but we just got here!” shouted Sunny. “You don’t even know why we’re here!”   
“Mr. Jiminez, can we talk?” shouted Red.   
“Sure you can,” said a voice from behind them. The boys jumped and quickly turned around to see an elderly man with snow white hair and burning eyes glaring at them. “But then you’re out of here!”   
Lloyd glanced between the man and the boathouse. “Wait, if you’re Mr. Jiminez, then, who was that saying ‘get out’?”   
Mr. Jiminez’s lips curled ever so slightly. “That was Don Quixote. He knows I don’t like having guests.” His face fell when he looked back at the boys. “Why are you here, anyways?”   
“We were actually sent by Vincent Steele to interview you, sir,” said Red. “He’s really uncomfortable around boats and asked us to come instead.”   
Mr. Jiminez raised an eyebrow. “He did, did he now?” He huffed. “Well, alright, come on in, but you’re going to make this quick.”   
“Yes sir,” chorused the boys. They parted to let Mr. Jiminez through before turning to follow him to the boathouse.   
Then they heard the shrill voice again. “Help! Help!”   
Mr. Jiminez glanced at the boathouse in alarm. “Por Dios! Don Quixote!” Red reacted instantly. He dashed up the plank, jerked open the screen door, and rushed inside. A large black myna bird was perched on a bookcase, flapping his wings and screeching in terror. The tiger-striped cat they saw entering earlier was poised to pounce on the bird. He leaped, and Red lunged, grabbing the cat around his stomach. The cat hissed at Red before dashing outside, right under the legs of the others.   
“Good riddance!” squawked the bird.  
Mr. Jiminez sighed with relief. “Thank goodness, you're alright! Thank you, young man.” He turned to the bird. “Don Quixote, tell the young man thank you.”   
“Thank you!” squawked Don Quixote. “Welcome aboard, mate!”   
Red grinned. “You're welcome. And thanks!”  
“Thank you, again,” said Mr. Jiminez. “I owe you.”   
Lloyd raised a finger. “Um, would an interview for Mr. Steele work? Even though we were going to already do that.”   
Mr. Jiminez chuckled. “I guess that would work. But what I want to know is, how did Vincent meet you?”   
The boys glanced at each other before explaining their employment and how they met Mr. Steele.   
Mr. Jiminez looked at them in surprise. “You work for the Reginald Hughes? And met Vincent on the set of the movie?” He let out a soft whistle. “Man, you get to be part of such a high society.”   
Sunny chuckled nervously. “Yeah, and they're not all as awesome as they make themselves out to be.”  
Mr. Jiminez grinned. “Oh good, you haven't kept the rose-colored glasses on for long.”   
Sunny scoffed. “With some people, it's easy to get them off sooner.”  
Mr. Jiminez laughed. “Well then, now that I know that, I really can tell you’re not that bad. I’ll answer all your questions. But first, would you like something to drink and eat?”   
“Oh just water for me, please,” said Red.   
“Same for me, please,” said Sunny.  
“Me too, please” asked Lloyd, “I’m still full from lunch.”   
Mr. Jiminez chuckled. “Fair enough. Please, take a seat. I’ll be back in a moment.” The three found seats while Mr. Jiminez went to get the water. Red pulled out the notebook. Mr. Jiminez came back with a tray with three cups of water and a mug of coffee a couple minutes later.   
“Thank you,” said each fellow as they grabbed a glass. Mr. Jiminez placed the tray on the table before grabbing the mug and sitting down.   
“Now, what did you want to ask me?”   
“Well, Mr. Steele wants to know how your ancestor, Miguel Jiminez, became a prominent gang leader. Was there another reason for the rivalry between your ancestor and Giovanni Russo, and why Stockton?”   
Mr. Jiminez took a sip of his coffee before sitting back in his chair. “Well, not much is known about my uncle’s rise to gang leader.” He nodded at the boys’ startled expressions. “Yes, the original Miguel Jiminez was my uncle. I was named for him, in fact. But that was apparently before his rise to gang leader. My father was disappointed in him.” He shrugged. “And that’s why Stockton. My father didn’t want us, his children, to be near the bad influences of my uncle, but he did still want to be near his hometown, so, Stockton it was. And that’s why I don’t know about my uncle’s rise to gang leader. I think my father wanted to keep that under wraps so none of us would try to follow in my uncle’s footsteps. But he did tell us a lot about the rivalry between my uncle and Mr. Russo, if only because my father was cheering Mr. Russo on.” He paused to take another sip of his coffee. He glanced at Red. “Aren’t you going to write any of that down?”   
Red blinked. “Oh, right!” He quickly wrote down what Mr. Jiminez just said. “Alright, I got that.” He grinned sheepishly. “Sorry about that.”   
Mr. Jiminez chuckled. “You’re fine, you’re not used to being a reporter.”   
Red chuckled. “That is true. Please continue.”   
Mr. Jiminez nodded. “Right, well, we were all just as upset with my uncle’s choice of careers and were all cheering on Mr. Russo, just like my dad. Some of my family members would say that the rivalry itself started because my uncle was making fun of Mr. Russo’s Italian heritage. Others said it was because Mr. Russo refused to let my uncle tyrannize the town. I decided to look more into it when I got older, it seems like it was a mix of both. Neither man really liked each other at all.” He huffed, took a sip of coffee, and chuckled. “And then came Maria Rodriguez.” He whistled. “She was one gorgeous femme fatale. She definitely wanted the attentions of Mr. Russo, his vineyard was prospering. But she also liked the wild life my uncle led. It was never known if she actually truly loved either man, or just what they brought to the table.” He shrugged. “I don’t think she really did. She did vanish into thin air. No one knows what came of her after my uncle captured Mr. Russo and locked him up in one of his own storage units. Rumor has it that Mr. Russo sent her away to keep her away from the battle, but a whole lot do speculate that she left both of them for another man. Whatever the case was, no one saw or heard of her ever again.”   
Sunny huffed. “No wonder why Miss Scarlet gets to play her.”   
Mr. Jiminez chuckled, then rolled his eyes. “There is no better fit for the role of Maria Rodriguez than Kasandra Scarlet. I think she was born to play that role. But, I must warn you, I think Kasandra Scarlet is ten times worse than Maria Rodriguez.”   
Sunny and Lloyd bobbed their heads. “Oh we know it,” said Sunny.   
Mr. Jiminez grinned broadly. “So I don’t have to worry about you getting all star-struck on set, huh?”   
“What I want to do is hurry up and get back,” confessed Lloyd. “I don’t like leaving Roy without back-up.”   
Mr. Jiminez blinked. “Roy?”   
“Oh, right, Roy Bivens, he’s a friend of Mr. Hughes and a detective.”  
“That’s good,” said Mr. Jiminez with a firm nod of his head.   
“Mr. Jiminez?” said Red. “What exactly happened during and after the battle?”   
“Well, Mr. Russo finally broke out of his imprisonment. He apparently broke his blade in the process and inscribed his will on it, just in case, and then fought with my uncle. Both men survived that day, and never fought again. My uncle left town, I think he even left the state, because we never heard from him again. My father met with Mr. Russo and congratulated him as well as expressed his condolences for having to deal with my uncle.” Mr. Jiminez shrugged. “And that was it. Mr. Russo married a woman by the name of Delilah Ross, had six kids, several grandkids, and, that’s all I know.”   
Red glanced over the information Mr. Jiminez provided. “That’s great. But there is one more question, if you don’t mind.”   
Mr. Jiminez shook his head. “Not at all.”   
“Mr. Steele found a rumor that suggested that Maria Rodriguez had a child by Giovanni Russo. Did you find any truth to that?”   
Mr. Jiminez stroked his beard thoughtfully. “Hmm, that thought had occurred to me. There was also a rumour that Maria had a child by my uncle. But she obviously left town before giving birth to the child.” He shrugged. “Sorry, I’m just as in the dark on that as you are.”   
“Well, thanks for talking to us,” said Red, standing up. He held out his hand.   
Mr. Jiminez grasped it and shook it heartily. “And thank you for saving Don Quixote. I really appreciate it.”   
Red smiled. “Glad to help.”   
“You know, I liked talking to you fellows. If you’re ever in the area, feel free to stop by.”   
Sunny stood up and shook hands with Mr. Jiminez. “You know, we just might take you up on that offer. It was great to talk to you too.”   
Mr. Jiminez smiled. “That’s good to hear. Oh, before I forget, if Vincent hasn’t found it yet, there is a book that you could look into about Mr. Russo. It’s in the school library of the College of the Pacific in Stockton. If he has, great, but it’s likely he hasn’t, it’s not a very well known book.”   
“Thanks,” said Red as Lloyd shook hands with Mr. Jiminez, “we’ll definitely let him know about that.”   
“You boys have a safe trip!” said Mr. Jiminez with a wave.   
“Bye mates!” squawked Don Quixote as they walked out the door.   
“Thanks!” they chorused as they waved back. The screen door slammed shut behind them as they made their way to the boat. Lloyd started up the engine while Sunny untied the rope and cast them off. Red helped him get on board before the two walked towards the dash.   
“Nice way to ask that question,” said Sunny in a bit of awe.   
Red smiled. “Thanks, though, unfortunately, we’re no further in getting that information than before. Maybe Roy can pull a few strings and find something out?”   
Sunny shrugged. “If that’s the only way to do it, it’s going to have to be the only way. But he’s going to need a bit more time to find that out than finding Mr. Jiminez. Finding him was easy, going through a genealogy report is going to take a little longer.”   
Lloyd huffed. “Yeah, and by the time that happens, we might as well have caught the whole gang and wormed the whole story out of them.”  
Red shrugged. “Well, guess we can come at this from both angles. We'll get the answers eventually.”   
Sunny nodded. “Definitely.” He then peered through the windshield. “And I hope that guy doesn't try to pull that stunt again.”   
Lloyd pursed his lips. “If he does, I’m going to try to push back.”   
Red gasped. “But this is a rental!”   
“I'm sure the guys who lent us this will understand it was in defense,” said Lloyd. “We’re already bringing it back to them with some damage.”   
“And it might get a little wet,” said Sunny. He pointed out the window. “Looks like those clouds are about to let loose any min . . .” A lightning bolt struck the water a few feet in front of them, followed by a thunderous boom. The three yelped and ducked. Lloyd had let go of the wheel for a brief moment before getting up and grabbing it again.   
“Well, we know for sure our little ambushing friend isn't out here, and that's because neither should we! Hang on!” Lloyd opened the throttle and the boat picked up speed. They entered the lake, and the clouds let loose. The rain came down in torrents. Red and Sunny had to act as look-outs for Lloyd, the windshield wipers weren't working fast enough to keep the rain off.   
By the time they got back to the dock, they were thoroughly soaked. They docked the boat and returned the key before dashing to the car.   
“Ugh!” said Sunny as he put the key in the ignition. “We got our clothes dry, just to get them soaked again!”   
Red chuckled as he held up the plastic bag of phones, wallets, and the notebook. “At least you had the foresight to bring this along to keep this all dry.” He paused as he noticed the phones were blinking. “Oh man, and I think they’ve been trying to get a hold of us!” He quickly fished out his phone. “Yeah, Roy’s been texting us.”   
Sunny pulled the car out of the driveway. “Well, let them know we’re just now leaving the boat rental. We should be back at the movie set in about an hour.”   
“Got it.” Red typed out the text and sent it. A minute later, he got a ding. He blinked. “Well that was fast.”   
“What did he say?” asked Lloyd, peering over his shoulder from the back seat.   
Red pulled up the text and read it out loud. “‘Good, make it quick. Mr. Hughes should be finished with his scenes by the time you get back. And we’re going to need to talk. There’s been a change in plans.’” The three glanced at each other.  
“Uh, that doesn’t sound good,” said Lloyd.   
“Are we going to have to split up again?” asked Sunny.   
“Or they found out something while at the movie set,” said Red. “They were going to keep an eye out for that gang following us.”   
“Except we ran into one,” said Lloyd. “Well, more like he rammed into us.”   
“Yes, but he didn’t follow us further,” said Red. He furrowed his eyebrows. “Why didn’t he stay around, or follow us further?”   
Sunny shrugged. “Maybe he thought he had finished the job.”   
“Maybe, but I’m not sure. It could have just been a warning.”   
Lloyd growled. “Some warning. If he actually knows us, he should have just left us alone, because now I want to see this to the end just to spite him.”   
“That might be why you’re seeing it to the end,” said Red, “I want to find the truth behind all this and help Signor Russo.” He glanced between Lloyd and Suny. “Well, I guess we’ll find out exactly what the changes are when we get to the movie set.” The other two nodded. But they were all anxious. What would they find out when they got back to the movie set?


	13. The College Library

“You’re kidding, right?” said Sunny as he crossed his arms. He didn’t wait for an answer from Roy or Mr. Hughes and turned to Red and Lloyd. “I told you so.” The group were in the room shared by Mr. Hughes and Roy. Roy didn’t think it was a good idea to share information on the movie set where too many ears were present. The boys were glad to go to the hotel as they were able to change into dry clothes. They shared information over take-out Italian.   
Mr. Hughes sighed. “Listen, it’s just for another two days. If you guys just had one guy following you around, then this should be fine.”   
“Listen Mr. Hughes, I don’t like it any more than Sunny does. Not only do you have that gang hovering nearby, you’ve still got Scarlet, White, and Plum on the set! Who knows what they’ll do!”   
“They’ll keep an eye out for that gang because they don’t want me dead just yet,” said Mr. Hughes with a wink.   
Lloyd threw up his hands. “I give up. You are just so eccentric.”   
Mr. Hughes bowed. “I thank you for the compliment.” Red grinned. Mr. Hughes might be eccentric, but he was fun, and he was very smart.   
“But you will come with us to see Mr. Steele tomorrow?” asked Red.   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “We’ll be there for a little while, but you’ll be on your own after that.”   
“We gathered as much,” mumbled Sunny.   
Mr. Hughes smiled softly. “You three have done fine work so far on your own.”   
“You mean like not getting killed?” asked Sunny.   
Mr. Hughes eyed him. “Anyways, I just want to know if they are following all of us, or just me in particular.”   
Lloyd raised an eyebrow. “But we did have a guy following us today.”   
Mr. Hughes raised a finger. “But is he part of the same gang, or he is working for someone else?”   
Lloyd blinked. “Oh, I hadn’t thought of that.”   
Mr. Hughes smirked. “See? And if he follows you again tomorrow, see if you can nab him and get him to talk to you. If he doesn’t, maybe he will talk to the police. But I really hope he will talk to you and give us some much needed information.” He turned to Roy. “And you will be able to do a genealogy search for any illegitimate children of Giovanni Russo?”   
Roy shrugged. “I can give it a try, no guarantee that I’ll be able to find anyone. Their genealogy reports would have to be on file in order to be found.”   
Mr. Hughes sighed. “Well, it’s at least something to look into, seeing as we haven’t been able to even confirm this rumor yet.” He glanced at Red, Sunny, and Lloyd. “Maybe there’s something in that book Mr. Jiminez recommended that you look into.” He glanced at the clock and stood up. “Well, I think that’s all we can discuss on the matter. It’s getting late, and I told Vincent we’d be there at eight since I have to be back at the movie set at nine-thirty.”   
Sunny let out a huff. “Cutting it pretty close, aren’t you?”   
Roy raised a finger. “I suggested it. Keeping an eye on those three and a look-out for the gang was a pain in and of itself during the breaks. I didn’t want to have to spend that much more time doing the same tomorrow.”   
“Good point,” mumbled Sunny.   
“Well, I think that's all we can talk about right now,” said Mr. Hughes. “We’ve got another busy day tomorrow, we’d better get our sleep. Good night, fellows.”   
“Good night, Mr. Hughes!” the three chorused. “Good night, Roy!”   
Roy waved as he followed Me. Hughes out the door. “Good night, fellows! Pleasant dreams!” He closed the door.   
Sunny huffed. “Yeah, sure, they're the ones who get to be on a movie set.”   
Lloyd nudged him. “Yeah, but we'll get to be with Vincent Steele.” He winked.  
Sunny grinned. “That is true. Well, guess I can sleep well tonight.” He yawned. “Well, I’m hitting the sack myself. Good night.”   
“Good night,” chorused Lloyd and Red. Both crawled into bed as well. But Red lay staring at the ceiling for a little while. If Mr. Jiminez didn't know about an illegitimate child, was there ever one? He had heard of the speculation, but apparently there was also speculation that it could have been his uncle's child. If Maria did have a child. That was something that no one seemed to have an answer to, though. Perhaps there was no child, and Maria’s reasons for leaving would be lost to history.   
The group arrived at Vincent Steele’s house at eight o’clock sharp. Sunny whistled as they parked on the street. There was a high fence surrounding the place.   
“Looks like an electric fence,” said Lloyd.   
“He is serious about keeping his privacy,” said Sunny.   
“That’s what I’ve been telling you,” said Mr. Hughes as he unbuckled. “But he is expecting us, so we should get going. I’m on a tight schedule here, so we need to make this quick.”   
“Yes sir,” chorused the others. They got out of the car and walked up to the gate. Mr. Hughes rang the doorbell on the gate.  
“Who is it?” came Vincent’s grumpy voice through the radio.   
“It’s Reginald Hughes.”   
“Oh! Yes! Come on in!” The gate swung open, and the group walked in. Vincent opened the door and waved them in. “Welcome! Welcome! May I present my wife, Myra? Myra dear, this is Reginald Hughes, Roy Bivens, Red Randall, Sunny Swarna, and Lloyd McGorman.”   
A woman who looked to be in her forties with her greying hair pulled up in a bun smiled at them. “Hello!”   
Mr. Hughes took her hand and gently pressed it to his lips. “A pleasure to meet you ma’am.” He glanced around the living room. “You have a lovely house.”   
“Thank you,” said Myra.   
Vincent nodded. “Thank you. Won’t you sit down?” They proceeded to take a seat. “Now, I know this doesn’t look like a wine storage building, but it definitely is. The house has just been built around and on top of it.”   
“Could the sword Adalante be here?” asked Mr. Hughes.  
Vincent rubbed his chin. “Not that I’m aware of, but then again I haven’t exactly looked either.” He shrugged and smiled apologetically. “Sorry.”   
Mr. Hughes waved his hand. “That’s perfectly alright. We can search for it ourselves, if you’d want.”   
“Must it be now?” asked Vincent.   
Mr. Hughes shook his head. “Oh no, I would like to be here. Not only that, but there is another wine storage building, at Carson’s Lodge. Plus there is the question of the gang that is following us. I would rather have them behind bars before we search your basement, should the sword be hidden here and not at Carson’s Lodge.”   
Vincent nodded. “Fair enough, but then, if you know the other locations, why are you asking around?”   
Mr. Hughes raised a finger. “Ah, yes, see, there’s more that we’re looking for than just the Adalante. See, the grandson of Giovanni Russo, my friend Ettore Russo, told us there was a rumor that the woman the duel was about could have had a child by him. However . . .” he paused and glanced at Red.   
Red pulled out the notebook and handed it to Vincent. “We spoke to Miguel Jiminez. The gang leader by the same name was his uncle, and there was the speculation that Maria Rodriguez might have had a child by him.” Red shrugged. “There was also a rumor that she left both men for another.”   
Vincent flipped through the notebook. “Interesting . . . and Mr. Jiminez has no clue how his uncle became a gang leader?”   
Red shook his head. “No sir, his father made sure to keep that information away from him and his siblings.”   
Vincent nodded slowly. “I see.” He huffed. “Well, that just might have to be a mystery.” He closed the notebook. “There was nothing else?”   
“Oh! Mr. Jiminez did mention that there is a book about Mr. Russo in the library at the College of the Pacific.”   
Vincent’s eyes widened. “Oh! I have paid a young lady to look through the books at every library in Stockton. We’re going to be meeting there today!”   
Mr. Hughes smiled. “Fabulous! I hope you’ll have found something!” He glanced at Red, Sunny, and Lloyd. “Would it be alright if Red, Sunny, and Lloyd go with you?”   
Vincent hemmed and hawed. “Well, I don’t want to have so many people with me. I fear that might draw too much attention.”   
“Well, how about just Red, then?” asked Mr. Hughes.   
“What?” chorused Sunny and Lloyd. Red blinked.   
Mr. Hughes glanced at them. “You can drop them off at the library and look into the hours at Carson’s Lodge.” He turned to Vincent. “Does that work for you?”   
Vincent nodded. “Yes, I think that will do just fine.”   
“Good.” Mr. Hughes turned to Sunny and Lloyd. “Just get me the information on Caron’s Lodge.”   
Sunny huffed and crossed his arms. “Fine.”   
“Thank you.” Mr. Hughes glanced at the clock. “And I’m afraid that’s all the time I have right now. I must get back to the movie set.”   
“Gene’s still got you on?”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “For today and tomorrow, and I told him that’s it. We must finish our search.”   
“Fair enough.” Vincent rose and held out his hand. “Thank you for allowing me to have your employees talk to Miguel Jiminez.”   
Mr. Hughes shook his hand and smiled. “It was my pleasure. Well, Roy, time to go.” He glanced at Red, Sunny, and Lloyd. “We’ll see you later. Just head to the hotel when you’re finished. We’ll go from there.”   
The three nodded. “Yes sir.” With a wave and a goodbye, the two were out the door.   
Vincent turned to the three. “Well, we should head out too. I told the young lady I would meet her at the library at nine-thirty, another reason why we had to meet so early.”   
Red stood up. “Well, if that’s the time you told her you would meet her, then let’s go.”   
Vincent turned to his wife. “We’ll be back soon.” he bent and kissed her.   
“Be careful, dear.”   
“I will.” The four left as well.   
Sunny and Lloyd dropped Vincent and Red off at the college before heading off towards Carson’s Lodge. Vincent and Red walked into the college and headed for the library.   
“I must confess there was another reason for wanting just one person to come along,” whispered Vincent.   
“Why’s that?” whispered Red.   
“Because I told the young lady that I’m Professor Von Stolk. It would be easier to explain away one person’s mistakes, should you make any, than three. With three people making the same mistakes, people start to get suspicious.”   
“Oh, I see, fair enough . . . Professor.”   
Vincent grinned. “I can see why Reginald thinks you were the better one to have along.’ He paused between a pair of bookshelves. “Ah, I think that’s her.” The two walked towards a table where a young woman sat, poring over a book. Vincent cleared his throat. She jumped a little, but turned towards him with a smile.   
“Oh, Professor! You startled me!”   
“Oh, I apologise, I was trying not to.”   
But Red’s eyes and mouth had widened. The young woman Vincent had hired was none other than June Falls! “June?”   
She blinked before her own mouth dropped in recognition. “Red?”   
Vincent glanced between them. “Wait, you know each other?” In hushed but excited tones, Red and June explained how they had met. Vincent blinked. “Wow, that’s, that’s amazing that you would end up at the very camp where she’s staying.”   
June turned to Red. “I didn’t know you and your friends were working for Professor Von Stolk!”  
“I didn’t know you did either!” whispered Red. “Otherwise, I would have mentioned it.” Though he was secretly glad he didn’t, otherwise, June would have become suspicious about Red working for both Von Stolk and Vincent Steele.   
June turned to Vincent. “But that means you know Reginald Hughes! Right?”   
Vincent smiled, but Red could tell he was starting to become a little nervous. “Well, well yes.”   
“How could that be?”   
“Well,” said Red before Vincent could answer, “that’s simple. Mr. Hughes is a good friend of Ettore Russo, Giovanni Russo’s grandson. Professor Von Stolk interviewed him.”   
“Oh, oh I see.” She grinned at them both. “This is awesome!”   
Vincent nodded, a little impatiently. “Yes yes, did you find anything?”   
“Oh yes.” She turned to the book open in front of her. “I found this book called Master of the Vineyards by Jose Flores. Except . . .”   
“Except what?” asked Vincent.   
June flipped to a page. “Except there’s four pages missing!”   
Vincent and Red glanced at each other in shock before looking closer at the book. “That’s odd, very odd. Why would someone take those four pages?”   
Red flipped to the front to see what the content page had, and his eyes widened. “Those four pages were about the Adalante!”   
June blinked. “What’s the Adalante?”   
“Giovanni Russo’s prize fencing blade,” explained Vincent. “Apparently someone’s after it.” He patted June’s shoulder. “However, I’m not, so the rest of this book will suit my needs. Thank you very much for finding it.”   
June stood up. “You’re welcome.” She shook hands with Vincent and turned to Red. “And it was good to see you again.”   
Red smiled. “It was good to see you again, too, June. Have a great rest of your summer.”   
“Thanks. You too. Bye!” With a wave, she was off.   
Vincent let out a huff as he picked up the book and flipped through it. “So, someone has already written a rather detailed account of Giovanni Russo’s life. And it doesn’t look like he talked to the Russo family.”   
Red glanced over his shoulder at the book. “But then how did he get all his information?”   
Vincent pulled out his phone and took a couple of pictures of the book, including the author’s information on the back panel. “I think I shall contact him and find out.” He pocketed his cell phone and put the book down on the table. “Well, I think that’s all we can do right now. And I don’t think your friends will be finished by now. Where are you staying?” Red gave him the name and address of the hotel they were staying at. “Oh, that’s actually not that far. Would you mind walking there?”   
Red shrugged. “It’s fine by me, if it’s alright with you.”   
Vincent nodded. “It’s fine with me. Let’s go.” The two walked out of the library, and soon out of the college. They had to stop at a busy intersection to wait for the light to change. Red figured it was a good time to text Sunny and Lloyd and tell them to meet them at the motel. He sent the text and pocketed his phone. The next thing he knew, he felt someone shove him. He stumbled into the road, in the path of an oncoming truck!


	14. One Riddle Is Solved

The truck honked at him. Red felt someone grab his arm and pull him back onto the sidewalk.   
“Are you alright?” Vincent asked.   
“Y-yes, thank you!” Red glanced around. “Did you see who did it?”   
“Yes.” Vincent pointed at a retreating figure. “That guy over there!”   
Red looked, and gasped. The guy had red hair! “That might be the same guy that tried to ram us down yesterday!” Red exclaimed. “Let’s nab him!”   
“But I think,” began Vincent, but it was too late, Red was already dashing after the guy. Vincent sighed. “Oh well. Help! Police! Help!”   
Red never lost sight of his quarry. He doggedly pursued him through the crowd and into an alley. The guy was racing towards the back where a fence was separating the alley from another street. He began to climb up it, but Red had caught up and grabbed a hold of him, pulling him down. The two scuffled for a couple of minutes before two cops showed up and collared them both. Vincent pointed at the guy.   
“That's him, officer, he pushed this young man in the way of the truck!”   
The officer holding Red let go and helped his teammate handcuff the crook. “Well we'll, looks like you caught yourself quite the catch. This is Red Bowers.” The officer looked at Red. “Now why would he try to kill you?”   
Red huffed. “I think it's because he's working for the rival of the man I’m working for. Both are searching for their grandfather's will.”   
“Ah,” said the officer. He glanced at Red Bowers. “Got anything to say?”   
Red Bowers growled. “I’ve never seen this jokester before in my life! And I’m not working for anyone!”   
“I saw you push him,” said Vincent sternly.   
“But what I want to know is, who else are you working with? And did Fabrizio Dente tell you to attack Signor Russo, or was that a decision you made?”   
Red Bowers blinked. “Say what?”   
“Did Fabrizio Dente order you to attack Signor Russo and leave him for dead?”   
“I-I know nothing about that, I promise!”   
Red got in his face. “Then what do you know?”   
“I was just told to scare you off the case, that was it. I knew you wouldn't be killed.”   
“Oh, that's reassuring,” grumbled Red. “So who hired you?”   
Red Bowers shook his head. “That I can't tell you.”   
“You can't, or you won't?” asked the officer. Red Bowers kept his mouth shut. The officer sighed. “We'll take him to the station and see if we can't get any more information out of him. Thanks for nabbing him.”   
Red gave the officer a pleasant smile. “You're welcome.” The two officers led Red Bowers away. Red growled. “Guess that wasn't much help.”   
“What do you mean it wasn't? You captured a pretty despicable criminal and put him off your trail. I’d say that's a big help. One less person to worry about following you.”   
Red huffed. “That is true, but I wish he had given us more.”  
Vincent shrugged. “You can't have everything. Just be happy with what you have and go from there.”   
Red sighed. “Fair enough. Come on, the guys might already be at the hotel.”   
Vincent nodded. “Right.” The two walked to the hotel quickly and on high alert, but nothing else happened to waylay them. As soon as they got into Red’s room, Red took a glance around, perplexed. They were the only two in the room.   
“Huh, I would have thought they would have been back by now.”   
Vincent shrugged. “They could still be on their way. But I will take this moment to call Mr. Flores. Excuse me.”  
Red smiled. “Of course.”   
Vincent walked outside to make the call. Meanwhile, Red took to thinking. So the guy he just caught, also nicknamed Red, off course, didn't know everything that was going on and was obviously working for someone. The other thing was, he was afraid of that person. Who did Fabrizio hire to keep his cousin away from the Adalante? Did he even know these guys were cutthroats? If he did, was he really that desperate? Red did hope one thing, if they kept taking out these guys one by one, they might be able to get the whole gang behind bars fairly quickly. But if anything, they might change tactics once they found out one of the gang was behind bars. He pursed his lips. They might even act out soon to make sure they didn't get to the Adalante.   
“Red! You alright?” exclaimed Sunny, bursting into the room. He was followed by Lloyd and Vincent. Red jumped and growled softly at the intrusion on his thoughts.   
“Yeah, I’m fine, thanks to Mr. Steele.”   
“And you captured the guy too?” Lloyd asked.  
Red sighed. “Yes.”   
“Man, why do you get all the fun?” said Lloyd with a humph as he crossed his arms.   
Sunny turned on him. “Dude, nearly getting run over by a truck isn't exactly fun.”   
“You're right, but he still captured the guy!”  
Red huffed. “Stick around long enough, you might just help catch the rest of the gang.”   
Lloyd grinned. “I definitely will.”   
Sunny rolled his eyes and groaned. “Ugh, whatever.” He turned to Red. “But seriously, man, you're fine?”   
Red smiled. “Yes, Sunny, I’m fine. Thank you.”   
“So, what did you guys find out?” Sunny asked.  
Red glanced at Vincent. “Well, I found out that June Fall works for Mr. Steele.”   
Lloyd's and Sunny’s mouths dropped as they glanced at Vincent. “Really?”   
Vincent shrugged and nodded. “Yeah, and it looks like you met her too. Strange coincidence that the camp you took refuge in after your little, ah, um, incident in the river just so happened to be the one Miss Falls was staying at.”   
Red nodded slowly. “Yes, rather coincidental indeed.”   
“Was that it?” asked Sunny slowly.   
Red and Vincent shook their heads and told them what the book said about Giovanni Russo and what Red Bowers had told them. Red continued on to reveal some of his speculations.   
Vincent rubbed his chin after a moment of silence. “If your hunch is correct, Mr. Randall, then we are dealing with a rather notorious, and dangerous gang.”   
Red huffed. “So it would seem. What did you find out from your phone call?”   
“Oh, I spoke to Mr. Flores’s secretary and we have a meeting set up for this afternoon.” He glanced at the clock. “Speaking of, you don’t mind my taking off right now?”   
Red, Lloyd, and Sunny glanced at each other. Red shrugged. “I don’t think it’s a problem. But speaking of, you two didn’t tell us what you found out.”   
Lloyd waved his hand dismissively. “Nowhere near as much as you. Carson’s Lodge is closed for the summer and is undergoing some maintenance. Sunny and I scoped out the place. We should be able to get in and search the wine storage rather quick.”   
Sunny nodded. “It’s being used as the waiting cabin for the ski lift. They wanted to keep it looking rustic, so not much was done to it.”   
Vincent nodded. “That’s good. We should be in and out of there in no time. Though I am glad you two didn’t take it upon yourselves to go searching for it right then and there.”  
Lloyd chuckled nervously. “The thought had crossed my mind, but Mr. Hughes said he wanted to be there when we found it, so we came right back.”  
Vincent smiled. “Yes, that is true.” He glanced at the clock again. “I really must go. Do you need to go anywhere?”   
“Um,” said Sunny, “is there any chance you would be able to drop us off at the movie set, or is that too far out of your way?”   
“Eh, it’s not too too far out of my way, but we have to leave now. It’s going to be cutting it close.”   
“Well we’re ready. Let’s go,” said Sunny. Red jumped up from the bed and made sure the door was locked before the three followed Vincent to his car. Vincent dropped them off at the movie set before heading on to his meeting with Jose Flores. Red, Sunny, and Lloyd sought out either Roy, Mr. Hughes, or Gene Zellers. They eventually found Roy in the director’s trailer, looking at some stuff on his laptop.   
Roy blinked at them as they filed into the trailer. “Why are you three here?”   
Lloyd shrugged. “We figured you could use the help. Plus, there’s nothing else we can do. I think we’ve found everything we can so far.”   
“Plus, Mr. Steele was going to a meeting with another author,” said Sunny. “We didn’t think he would need all of us there.”   
Roy adjusted in his seat and placed his head on his hand. “Well then, what did you find out?” The three brought him up to date on everything that had happened. His mouth dropped when Red told him about catching their tail and his speculations. “He pushed you into the path of a truck?”   
“And then he caught him!” said Lloyd with a little cheer. “Now we don’t have to worry about one guy!”   
Roy pursed his lips. “Yeah, one guy. Who knows how many people are in this gang.” He turned to his laptop. “What did you say his name was?”   
“The officer called him Red Bowers,” reported Red. “I remember because he’s going by the same nickname that I am.”   
Roy nodded as he typed on his laptop. “Yeah, you’d be surprised by how many go by that nickname. Hmm, Red Bowers, Red Bowers . . . it doesn’t say that he’s part of any gang nor is known for dealing in gang activities . . .”   
“Was he arrested for anything previously?” asked Red.   
“He was a common thief and is out on parole, but he has since killed a man, which is why the police were looking for him.” Roy glanced at Red. “You would have been murder victim number two if Mr. Steele hadn’t been there.”   
Red let out a huff. “So I figured.”   
“But this also means we don’t know how many are in the gang, if they even are a gang. They could just be a group of criminals brought together to take out Signor Russo, and us, apparently.” Roy glanced at Red. “And if your hunch is correct, then the guy Red Bowers was working for is going to be more ruthless.”   
“As ruthless as Mr. Hughes’s special friend?” said Sunny in a mocking tone.   
“It’s possible.” At that moment, the trailer opened, and Gene Zellers walked in.   
“Hey Roy, can I ask you a . . .” He paused when he saw the three young men. “Oh, you’re here! Fantastic! I need three extras for a few scenes. Come get fitted!”   
The three glanced at each other. “Uh . . .”   
Roy chuckled. “Go ahead. You should be able to keep an eye out for our, um, adversaries.”   
“Are you kidding?” blurted Sunny. “We get to be extras in a movie. Heck yeah!”   
“That’s the spirit!” said Gene with a smile. “Come on!” With a whoop, Sunny and Lloyd took off after Gene. Red sighed and shook his head before chuckling and following them. They got fitted into vineyard worker outfits and were told what to do. All three set about their tasks with eagerness. But then they saw Scarlet and White enter the scene, and all their senses were on high alert. Yet, even though they kept a rather close eye on the goings-on of the set and kept an eye out for the gang, they managed to have fun and did a pretty good job as extras.   
When the scenes were finished, they walked back with Mr. Hughes to Gene’s trailer. Roy was still working away at his laptop.   
“Anything?” asked Mr. Hughes the instant the door was closed behind them.   
Roy shook his head. “Nothing so far, there’s still a few left they have to get through.”   
“Alright.” Mr. Hughes turned to the three. “And what happened to you three this morning?” The three related their adventures again.   
“And Red Bowers isn’t part of any gang and there are no known associates,” said Roy when the three finished their narrative.   
“Well, I think it’s safe to say we’re making some progress,” said Mr. Hughes as he proceeded to sit down. “Do you know when Vincent will let us know about his meeting?”   
“Oh, no, I didn’t ask,” said Red with a wince. “I figure he’ll call us with whatever information he gets from this meeting.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “Very well. I think we should head back to the hotel and go over what we do know so far.”   
“Sounds good,” said Roy, closing his laptop. The five left the set and went to the hotel. They had their little meeting in Mr. Hughes’s and Roy’s room.   
“So, what do we have right now?” asked Mr. Hughes.  
“Well,” began Red as he paced around, “this whole thing started with Signor Russo getting hurt. Red Bowers put me, Sunny, and Lloyd in harm’s way yesterday, and me today, to keep us from finding the Adalante. At least, that’s what I gathered. He won’t tell us who he’s working for, or with, meaning it’s possible he’s scared of them. He also did not confirm that they were working for Fabrizio Dente, though it’s very likely they are. Then comes the question of the illegitimate heir. But we haven’t been able to find anything on that front. Now, the wine storage building at the construction site did not have the Adalante, meaning it could only be either at Carson’s Lodge or at Mr. Vincent Steele’s house.” Red stopped pacing and shrugged. “That’s the gist of it.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “That sounds about right. And we are going to do Vincent’s house last to give us a chance to capture the gang, should the Adalante be at his house and not at Carson’s Lodge.”   
“What you wanna bet the Adalante is in fact at Mr. Steele’s house?” mumbled Sunny. “That would be rather ironic, to be honest.”   
“Well if it is, then maybe we can use Carson’s Lodge as a trap to capture the rest of the gang.”   
Lloyd grinned. “I like that idea.”   
All five jumped when a loud banging was heard at their door.   
“Now who could that be?” asked Roy as Mr. Hughes rose to open it. Vincent Steele stood on the other end.   
“Mr. Steele?” chorused Red, Sunny, Lloyd, and Roy.   
“Why Vincent, what’s wrong?” asked Mr. Hughes.   
“You are not going to believe this, but . . . this is Josefina Flores.” He stepped aside to let in a lovely Hispanic woman in her mid thirties.   
“Oh, the daughter of Jose Flores, I presume?” said Mr. Hughes.   
She smiled. “I am. Mr. Steele was telling me you were looking for me.”   
“Uh, we weren’t specifically looking for you,” said Roy.   
Miss Flores blinked. “Oh, but he said you are!”   
“They are indeed!” exclaimed Vincent. He let out a huff. “Gentlemen, she is not only the daughter of Jose Flores, the author of Master of Vineyards, she is also the granddaughter of Maria Rodriguez!”


	15. The Illegitimate Heir

There was a moment of silence as everyone’s mouths dropped and they stared at Josefina Flores in shock. Roy jumped up and walked towards the door.   
“But how come I couldn’t find you through the genealogy reports?”   
“Because Maria Rodriguez was not my grandmother’s real name. Her real name was Rosa Orellana. Look it up.”   
Roy quickly pulled out his laptop and did the search. His eyes widened. “Yeah, there you are!”   
Josefina smiled. “You see?”   
Mr. Hughes glanced at Josefina. “But then why would your grandmother change her name?”   
Josefina shook her head. “I can only give that story to the descendants of Giovanni Russo and Miguel Jiminez. Once they have been told, then we will decide if the story will be made public.” Red noticed the crestfallen face of Vincent Steele. He had apprently pleaded with her to tell him, but since these were her conditions, must have figured it best to get her to tell the relatives quickly so he could get this information for his book.  
“I think that can be arranged.” Mr. Hughes turned to Red, Sunny, and Lloyd. “Looks like you three are going to need to get back to Mr. Jiminez’s.”   
“Uh, but Mr. Hughes, Mr. Jiminez is the nephew, not descendant, of the original Miguel Jiminez,” said Red.   
“Are there no descendants?” asked Josefina.   
The group shook their heads. “No,” said Roy, “Miguel Jiminez, the nephew, is the only close relative.”   
Josefina let out a huff. “I guess that will do. But my grandmother told my mother, and she told me, that the truth behind the whole thing could be only told to the relatives of Miguel Jiminez and Giovanni Russo.”   
“Why didn’t your mother seek them out earlier?” asked Sunny. “As a matter of fact, why didn’t you?”   
“Well my mother felt awkward talking to the families of the men who could be her father . . .”   
“Wait, Maria, I mean, Rosa, didn’t know who the father was?” asked Roy.   
Josefina shook her head. “No, that was one thing none of us knew. And that’s why I was waiting.” She let out a breath. “I wanted to find out which man was my grandfather before I spoke to the descendants.”   
Roy smiled. “I think I can help you with that. But I will need samples from both of the relatives as well.”   
Josefina sighed. “Guess we’re getting together after all.” She looked at Roy. “Will the process be quick?”   
Roy winced. “Well, since you’re Maria’s granddaughter, it’s going to take a while. A couple of weeks at most. I mean, having Ettore Russo’s DNA and Miguel Jiminez’s DNA might make it go by faster, but since you’re all relatives and not the actual people, it could take a little longer as they have to find the DNA in you that matches or is similar to DNA that’s relative to their’s.”   
Josefina huffed. “Very well, it will have to do. When shall we get started?”   
“Well,” said Mr. Hughes, “Ettore Russo is staying at my cabin and Miguel Jiminez would need to be told in person or by letter, though I’m sure you can figure in person will be much faster.” He turned to Roy. “Would you go with Miss Flores and Mr. Jiminez to my cabin? You can bring Ettore up to date as well.”   
Roy nodded. “Sure.”   
Mr. Hughes turned to Red, Sunny, and Lloyd. “And we’ll just have to wait for you three to get back with Mr. Jiminez’s answer tomorrow.” He turned to Josefina. “Will that work for you? I can have Mr. Jiminez and Roy ready to go as soon as posible.”   
Josefina smiled. “I would like that very much.” She turned to Vincent. “And I appreciate you bringing me here to meet these fine men.” She chuckled. “Even if it is in the hopes of getting my side of the story in this legend of the wild west.”   
Vincent smiled. “You are very welcome.” He chuckled softly. “Even if it is to get your story for my book.”   
Mr. Hughes clapped his hands. “Wonderful! If we may have your number, Miss Flores, we will contact you and let you know right away when we have set up your departure.”   
Josefina smiled. “Of course!” They swapped numbers and chatted for a bit longer before Vincent and Josefina left.   
Mr. Hughes turned to the group. “Well, looks like we have our day set up for tomorrow. I’ll call that boat rental place and get you a boat again. Do all three of you want to go again?”   
Roy raised a hand. “I think one of them should come with us to the movie set. I’ll need to concentrate on getting the genealogy reports set up.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “You’re right on that.” He glanced over the three before pointing at Lloyd. “Lloyd, you’ll be keeping an eye out for the gang.”   
“And on Scarlet, Plum, and White,” added Roy.   
Mr. Hughes then pointed at Red and Sunny. “That leaves you two for taking the message to Mr. Jiminez. Do you remember where his house is?”   
The two nodded. “Yes sir,” they chorused.   
“Good, I hope Mr. Jiminez will agree. I don’t see why not, but should he have any concerns about the cost, let him know I will cover it.”   
They nodded. “Right.”   
“Well then, good night, gentlemen.” The five said their good nights and went to sleep.   
They were up bright and early the next morning, Lloyd in particular eager to get his job underway. After dropping off Mr. Hughes, Roy, and Lloyd at the movie set, Red and Sunny went on their merry way back to Stockton and the river. Finding the boat rental, and later, Mr. Jiminez’s boathouse, was a piece of cake now. And no one tried to waylay them, though they did ponder visiting the camp where the girls were staying to sau hello. They ended up deciding against it, thinking their errand far more important and time-sensitive.   
When they pulled into the swamp where Mr. Jiminez lived, they saw the elderly man out on the land, planting some kind of fruit. Don Quixote was preening himself as he perched on the lowest beanch of the nearest tree. He was the one who saw them first.   
“Ahoy mates! Welcome back!”   
Mr. Jiminez straightened up from his task and waved to them, a merry smile on his face. “Welcome back indeed! But I must wonder, why are you back so soon?”   
The two leaped off the boat and quickly explained. Mr. Jiminez’s mouth dropped further with every passing word.   
“You’re kidding?” he exclaimed at the end of it.   
The two shook their heads. “We’re telling you the truth, every word,” said Red.   
Mr. Jiminez leaned back against his house. “Well that explains a lot! No wonder why no one could ginf her after she left town, she went back to using her real name! ANd now I’m really curious to learn why.”   
“You mean you’ll go?” asked Red.   
Mr. Jiminez shrugged. “Why not? I’m as curious to find out more as your friend. Besides, it will put this young lady’s mind at ease to know who her grandfather really was, especially if Maria herself didn’t even know who the father was.”   
Red nodded. “I think it will.”   
Sunny jumped. “Yes! When can you be ready to go?”   
“I can go now. Let me pack my things and get Don Quixote. I’ll join you in a minute.”   
“Would you like some help?” asked Sunny.   
Mr. Jiminez rubbed his chin. “Maybe you two can handle Don Quixote. I’ll get my things. Won’t be long.”   
Sunny saluted him. “Yes sir!” Mr. Jiminez grinned before walking into the house. Sunny whistled. Don Quixote! Come on! You’re going on a trip!”   
“Yay! Yay! Trip! Trip!” squawked the bird. The guys laughed. He followed the two into the house. They quickly got his cage set up and got him to the boat. Sunny quickly got on his phone and sent a text to Roy, Lloyd, and Mr. Hughes, telling them the good news. The next minute, Mr. Jiminez came out with a suitcase and climbed on board. He nodded with pleasure at how the boys got Don Quixote set up.   
“We’re all set to go,” said Mr. Jiminez with a grin.   
“Ready! Ready!” squawked Don Quixote with a flap of his wings. Both seemed excited to go.   
Sunny grinned. “Then hold on tight!” He pulled out of the lagoon and the four sped back to the boat rental. They checked the boat back in and leaped into the car, eager to get the hour-long drive back to the hotel over.   
“Why don’t you boys tell me about yourselves? How did you come to work for Reginald Hughes?”   
“Well,” began Sunny, “I went to college to become a mechanic. I’ve always had a fascination with cars and how they worked. I went from job to job while I worked my way through college. But when I graduated, it seemed like the job I wanted wasn’t available. I became a taxi driver for a little while. It was alright, but not quite what I had wanted. Well, my grandfather used to work for Mr. Hughes’s family, and called him up to help me out. I in fact just so happened to be the one to pick him up from the airport. We chatted on the way to the coffee shop where he was meeting my grandfather. I had no idea who he was nor what my grandfather was doing for me until I saw him sitting at one of the tables outside the shop. My grandfather called me to his table and introduced me to Mr. Hughes. Mr. Hughes had already made his decision by the time we arrived at the shop and hired me on the spot. I wasn’t sure at first, but he had not only given me the job to drive him around, but also the job of mechanic on his cars. I’ve never been happier.” Sunny smiled. “He’s been absolutely wonderful and not just to me, but to my family as well. He’s helping put my sisters through college.”   
Mr. Jiminez nodded. “He sounds like a wonderful man.” He turned to Red. “And what about you, young man?”   
Red shrugged. “Well, I had always wanted to be a pilot, I just wasn’t sure what kind of a pilot just yet. Well, I mean, I did know I had wanted to travel to see the world, but I wasn’t quite sure about being a pilot for those big passenger planes. My dad suggested that I put my name out for hire. I guess that’s how Mr. Hughes came across my name. He went out to Hawaii to see me in action, and apparently he liked what he saw and hired me. I’ve only flown him once though.”   
Sunny scoffed. “And now here we are, using a car and a boat far more often than your plane.”   
Red chuckled. “I know, but it’s for a good cause. I want to help Signor Russo get his inheritance.”   
Mr. Jiminez nodded, smiling. “I knew I would like talking to you. And I can see why Mr. Hughes hired you two. You’re a couple of fine chaps.”   
Red and Sunny grinned at him. “Thank you sir!”   
Sunny furrowed his brow as he turned his attention back to the road. “But, how can you tell based on our backstories?”   
Mr. Jiminez chuckled and patted his nose with his finger. “When you’re as old as me, you pay attention to certain things. But I’ll give you a clue. The way you talked about your families. I know Red didn’t talk much about his, but I could tell from the sound of his voice that he admired and respected his father. And thus, you’re a couple of fine chaps.” He grinned.   
Sunny blinked. “That, that makes sense actually.” He winced. “And probably why we don’t like the usual suspects.”   
Mr. Jiminez blinked. “Huh?”   
Sunny waved his hand. “Some people you don’t have to worry about, Mr. Jiminez. You just worry about talking to Miss Josefina Flores and Signor Russo.” He then grinned. “Mr. Steele is itching to have that story for his book.”   
“He wants it that badly, huh?” He chuckled. “I’ll be sure to put in a good word for him. He’s a fine fellow too.”  
Red smiled. “We think so too. And thank you. I’m sure he’ll appreciate it.”   
When they pulled into the hotel parking lot, they saw Roy and Josefina waiting for them. Roy got into the car and told them to take them to the airport immediately. They were soon back on the road again, this time to the airport. Josefina and Mr. Jiminez chatted gaily the whole way. By listening in, Roy, Red, and Sunny found out that Josefina’s father wrote the book about Giovanni Russo because he was genuinely interested in the history of the man, and was hoping it would get the attention of the family to connect them to his family so Josefina and her mother could talk to them. But since the book stayed under the radar of most book clubs, that didn’t go too far.   
They pulled up to the airport and the three quickly filed out of the car and got into the airport.   
Roy paused at the window. “I’ll try to make this go as quickly as possible, so you three are going to have to be on high alert. We still have the rest of the gang at large and know nothing else about their plans. They seem to have gone quiet for now. Who knows what they’ll do if they found out I was gone. If you do go to Carson’s Lodge, let me know. I’ll see if I can meet you out there once I’ve got their genealogy tests sent out.” He let out a huff. “Just, please make sure Reginald doesn’t do anything before then. I have notified the local police of what’s going, so you can call them should you need any back-up. Just tell them my name, and they should send in some help.” He reached into the window and shook hands with both. “Good luck to both of you. With how fast you’ve worked on this, something tells me I had better hurry it up and get back here before you get this all solved before I’m done.”   
Sunny grinned. “Want to bet?”   
Roy rolled his eyes. “Let’s not. I don’t like gambling with people’s lives.” He paused and glanced at his watch. “I need to get in there. Be careful, and be alert. I think the worst part of it is coming. Bye!”   
Red and Sunny waved. “Bye!”   
“Well, that wasn’t ominous at all,” muttered Sunny as they pulled away from the airport.   
Red pursed his lips. “He is right, you know. That gang is still out there, and we still don’t know how many people are part of it. And we don’t know their plans, if we didn, we would have been able to take care of them pretty quickly.”   
“Yeah, but that would have been too easy,” said Sunny with a scoff. “Nothing’s ever that easy.”   
“Except that your grandfather knew Mr. Hughes,” said Red with a knowing smirk.   
“Hey, I still worked hard to learn everything I would need to know to work for Mr. Hughes, which is why he hired me,” returned Sunny with a smirk.   
Red chuckled. “This is true.” Then the two became serious. There was still the question of what lay ahead of them on this treasure hunt. So far Red had caught one of the gang. Would they be able to catch the rest? And they now knew for sure that the illegitimate heir wasn’t behind it at all. They had just sent her off to meet Signor Russo for the first time. And if they used the same technique that Mr. Jiminez used, she spoke quite respectfully and warmly of her family, meaning she was a fine lady. That then left Fabrizio Dente behind all this. Did Signor Russo actually know his cousin, or had he just hired the only men he could find to take on this job? They were certainly well on their way to finding the answer to that, as they were soon to find out.


	16. Last Day on the Movie Set

As soon as Sunny and Red got to the filming set, they set off in search of Lloyd and/or Mr. Hughes. They found Lloyd in the mess hall chatting away with Jeff.   
“What are you doing here?” asked Sunny. “Why aren’t you with Mr. Hughes?”   
“Because Mr. Zellers called together a meeting of the primary cast and crew,” mumbled Lloyd. “We weren’t invited. So we came here for a quick bite.”   
Red sighed. “Do you know how long it’s going to be?”   
Jeff shrugged. “Another ten minutes, I hope. Sometimes they can last longer if someone brings up something or other.”   
Sunny huffed. “Well I hope it’s soon. We’re going to have to figure out what we’re going to do from here on out. Roy doesn’t want us to do much without him here.”   
“Eh,” said Lloyd, “I kinda agree with him, but then, I also want to catch those guys real quick too.” He grinned. “That would be fun.”  
Sunny grinned. “That it would.” He slammed his fist into his palm. “And get back at them for all the trouble they’ve been causing us.”   
“And for nearly killing Signor Russo,” muttered Red.   
“Yeah, that too,” said Sunny.   
Jeff glanced at his watch. “Well, if you two want to grab a bite to eat, you can do so now. We can head over to the meeting area once you’re finished.”   
“Yeah, let’s, we’ve been on the road so much since breakfast we haven’t had a chance to eat anything,” said Dunny.   
“Even though you could eat on the road,” quipped Lloyd.   
“Talking with Mr. Jiminez was more fun,” replied Sunny before heading off to the cafeteria line to get some food, Red not far behind. They each grabbed a plate and served themselves some of the gourmet sandwiches and salads. They rejoined Jeff and Lloyd.   
“Jeff’s been keeping an eye on things around here as well,” said Lloyd while they ate. “So far, they haven’t noticed anything out of the ordinary, you know, like other members of the gang.” Lloyd huffed. “We still have Scarlet, White, and Plum on the set, though.”   
Jeff rolled his eyes. “What is it with you three and being so suspicious of those three? They’re some of the big name celebrities!”   
Sunny scoffed. “Hang around them long enough, and you’ll find out real quick why we don’t like them.”   
Red smiled nervously. “Though, I have gotten on Miss White’s good side, apparently. I’ve only known them for a few days and, well, they have proven to be rather, um, selfish.”   
Lloyd scoffed. “Yeah, and once given the chance, White will turn on you too.”   
“I’ve been telling him that,” remarked Sunny. He shrugged. “But he’s probably smart in wanting to stay in her good graces until then. The others left him alone almost immediately when she stepped up for him back at the cabin.”   
Jeff glanced between them, curious. “Wait, what happened at the cabin?”   
The three glanced at each other, unsure of what they should say, but eventually, the majority of the story came out. They downplayed the seriousness of Signor Russo’s wounds as well as some of their own close calls, but Jeff got the majority of the story. He stared at the three when they finished, his mouth open in shock.   
“Seriously?” he finally blurted. “How desperate are these guys?”   
“Apparently pretty desperate,” said Sunny.   
“That, or they’re been paid good money to do this,” said Red.   
“I don’t see how that works since Cousin Fabrizio is in a lot of debt, but I guess,” said Sunny with a shrug.   
“Ok, so they’re promised a lot of money,” remarked Red. “Either way, we’ve got to put a stop to all of this before anyone else gets hurt. I’m glad Miss Flores and Mr. Jiminez aren’t here right now, but I worry about Mr. Steele and Mr. Hughes.”   
“Well, both should be safe for now,” said Jeff, “seeing as how they’re both surrounded by a bunch of people.” He glanced worriedly between the three. “But, um, maybe not if Miss Scarlet, Mrs. White, and Mr. Plum are nearby.”   
“Actually, for once, I think he’s safest with them,” muttered Sunny. “They want to be the ones to plan his demise, and keep him alive until they’re through with using him for his money.”   
“But if they’re going to get his money,” began Jeff.   
“If he dies now, all six will inherit his wealth. They’re trying to figure out how they can get all of it without sharing with any of the other five,” said Sunny with ice in his voice. “It’s apparently a delicate process.”   
“Ah,” said Jeff and Red at the same time.   
“So, yeah, they’re probably safe with them right now,” said Lloyd. “But only for right now. We still don’t know how or when they’re going to strike.”   
Jeff glanced at his watch. “Well, if you two will hurry up and finish eating, we can head over there in a couple of minutes. The meeting should, hopefully, be done by then.”   
“Why didn’t you just stand over by the place where they’re meeting anyhow?” asked Sunny before taking a bite of food.   
“Because you can basically hear through those trailers and Mr. Zellers didn’t want anyone interrupting.”   
Red’s head snapped up. “Wait, you can hear their conversation through the trailer?”   
“Well, yeah,” said Jeff slowly.   
“We should head over there, now!” said Red before stuffing his face with the last of the food.   
“Whoa wait, what? Slow down man!” said Lloyd while Sunny ate faster. “Why do we need to head over now?”   
“Don’t you see? This would be the perfect time for someone to eavesdrop,” Red quickly explained as he tossed his trash in the garbage can. “They probably won’t find anything useful since Mr. Zellers is talking about the movie, but do they know that?”   
“But they’ll figure out real quick that it is about the movie,” pointed out Jeff. “Like I said, you could hear through the trailer.”   
“But they could stay around to see if they do let any information drop,” said Red, walking towards the front.   
“He’s got a point,” said Sunny as he quickly tossed his empty plate in the garbage can as well and began to follow him out.   
“The whole gang could be there!” said Lloyd.   
“Then let’s go find out! But we should be quiet,” said Red.   
“Right,” the other three said before they left the mess hall. They walked briskly towards the trailer for a while before ducking and continuing in single file. They crouched behind some bushes near the trailer. They didn’t see anyone on this side.   
“Sunny, you and I will go one way, Jeff, Lloyd, you two take the other. Maybe we can corner them,” whispered Red.   
“Or we could . . .” was all Lloyd could say before they went completely quiet. They had heard the words “Carson’s Lodge” coming from the trailer.   
“You’re positive the sword is there?” came Mr. Steele’s voice.   
“Pretty positive,” was Mr. Hughes’s reply.   
“Why the need to tell me too?” came Gene’s’ voice.   
“In case anything should happen to us or to Vincent,” said Mr. Hughes. “These men seem pretty insistent that we don’t find the sword. Though how they found out we were even looking for it is still a mystery to us. No one was around my cabin when we were making plans.”   
Red gritted his teeth as he stopped paying attention to the conversation. There were now. He raised his hand and gave the signal to split up. Jeff and Lloyd nodded and went to the right of the trailer while Red and Sunny went left. Red got to the corner and peeked around it. Sure enough, someone was crouched up next to the wall, listening intently. He didn't seem to be paying attention to anything else except the conversation. Red saw Lloyd’s head poke around the other corner. His eyes widened before looking at Red. Red gave a small nod and the two inched forward. He didn’t know who stepped on what, but a soft crunch alerted their adversary of their presence. The guy’s head snapped up and his eyes widened upon seeing Red. He growled and took off running.   
“Cut him off!” shouted Red as the four took off after him. “Someone stop that man!” But no one did. Red, when he noticed this, put on speed, shortening the distance between him and the man. But that didn’t seem to matter as the guy jumped into a car driven by another man and they took off. The four paused by the side of the road, panting.   
“Did, did you get the license plate?” asked Lloyd between breaths of air.   
Red shook his head. “No.”  
“How could you?” said Sunny between gasps of air. “It was all muddied up!”   
“Oh how convenient,” mumbled Lloyd.   
“Not if they did it on purpose so no one could find them,” said Red. “But we at least know one thing, there are still at least three men in this gang.”   
“Well, I at least know what that make and model is, I could help the police narrow it down,” said Sunny.   
“And I only got a quick look at the two guys in the front,” said Jeff, “but they look like they could be brothers!”   
“They also looked foreign,” mumbled Sunny. “One of them must be the one who paid Harry Madsen to kill us.”   
“And the guy we were chasing looked like he could be the same size as Mr. Mustard,” pointed out Lloyd. “I think we found our attempted murderer.”   
“And now they know not only about Carson’s Lodge, but also that Mr. Steele’s house might be a possible hiding place for the Adalante,” said red with a soft growl. “Come on, we’d better tell Mr. Hughes about this.” The four quickly retraced their steps back to the trailer. The three men who were inside it earlier were now waiting outside for them.   
“What in the world happened?” asked Mr. Zellers.   
“Was it one of the gang?” asked Mr. Hughes.   
“We think so,” began Red.   
“Oh definitely,” said Lloyd.   
“And he heard everything you were saying,” said Red.   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “Good.”   
“Wait, you wanted him to hear everything?” asked Lloyd incredulously.   
Mr. Hughes nodded again. “I did, we’re planning to trap them at Carson’s Lodge.”   
“Wouldn’t he have heard that part?” quipped Sunny.   
Mr. Hughes grinned. “No he didn’t, because you were chasing him while we were talking about it.”  
“We heard you chase him away,” explained Gene. “We could have heard you a mile away!”   
“Sorry,” mumbled Red and Jeff.   
“Wait, a mile away?” asked Lloyd. “I didn’t think we were that loud.”   
Mr. Hughes raised his hands. “Point is, we know for a fact that we have been followed and they heard the part I wanted them to hear.” He glanced between the four. “How did you lose him?”   
Red sighed. “Two guys picked him up in a car.”   
“Alright, so there are at least three guys left in this gang,” said Mr. Hughes.   
“And they looked like brothers,” said Jeff.   
“And foreign,” added Sunny.   
Mr. Hughes rubbed his chin. “Hmm, we seem to be getting somewhere then. Sounds like we have definitely got an idea of who paid Mr. Madsen to kill us. And I highly doubt Signor Dente was with them.”   
“No, but hopefully they’ll tell us once we capture them tonight?” said Suny.   
“But what exactly is the plan for tonight?” asked Red.   
“The four of us are going to be bait,” said Mr. Hughes. He held up his phone. “And I called the police station to let them know of our plans. They’re going to get there a half hour after we do to arrest them.”   
Sunny glanced at his phone. “Ok, well, what shall we do until then?”   
Mr. Hughes shrugged before turning to Gene. “Got anything that needs doing?”   
Gene scratched his chin. “I might have a thing or two you could do, if you don’t mind”   
“Well alright then,” said Mr. Hughes, rolling up his sleeves. “Let’s get to work.” The four glanced at each other and sighed before getting to work. Gene had them moving pieces around, helping out with scenes, and even be a few extras yet again. Yet despite the annoyance of having to do these things, they enjoyed doing it and the time flew. Before they knew it, it was time to head to Carson’s Lodge and solve this mystery once and for all.


	17. Carson's Lodge

The sun was setting when four guys walked up to the closed ski resort, otherwise known as Carson's Lodge.   
“Where’s the old wine storage?” asked Mr. Hughes.   
“What I want to know is, where’s Roy?” asked Sunny. “He told us not to do this without him!”   
“Keep your voice low, Sunny,” said Mr. Hughes, “we don’t know if our adversaries are here yet.”   
“Well I hope they are,” said Sunny, though he did lower his voice, “I’ve got a score to settle with them.”   
“Then why’d you ask about Roy?” muttered Lloyd.   
Sunny shrugged. “Just so I can tell Roy that we at least reminded Mr. Hughes about telling him.”   
Mr. Hughes patted his back. “Good job in covering your back.”   
Sunny grinned. “Gotta have it covered. Don't want to get on Roy’s bad side either.”   
Mr. Hughes chuckled. “Fair enough.”   
“Should I tell him that too?” quipped Lloyd.   
“Shut up!”   
“Sh!” said Mr. Hughes. The two went quiet. “Thank you. Now where is the wine storage?” The two pointed up. There, at the top of a hill, the outline of the wine storage as the setting sun seemed to wash away its defining details.   
Red had been unable to peel his eyes from the main building, though his eyes flitted back and forth over the darkening landscape. An uneasy feeling crept on him and it seemed to grow stronger with each passing minute. “How much longer until the cops arrive?”   
Sunny glanced at his watch. “Another twenty-five minutes.”   
“Dude, chill, we just got here,” said Lloyd.  
Mr. Hughes scrutinized him. “Are you feeling alright, Red?”   
“I, I don’t know. I know this is such a cliche quote, but I’m going to say it anyways. I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”   
Lloyd scoffed. “We’re about to meet the guys who’ve been tailing us and tried to kill us, how could you not have a bad feeling?”   
“Oh thanks for the reassurance,” muttered Red.   
“I’m just saying it’s only natural.”   
“The waiting’s going to be the worst part of it,” said Mr. Hughes.   
“I can tell,” mumbled Sunny. “I want to do something now.”   
“Well, we can split into two groups and check the perimeter of the lodge real quick.” Mr. Hughes held up his finger. “But if you do see them, do not engage. We’re just here to stall them until the police arrive, understand?”   
“Perfectly,” said Sunny.   
“Yes sir,” said Red.   
“Fine,” mumbled Lloyd.   
Mr. Hughes glanced at Lloyd. “And I think you’d better come with me.”   
“Ugh, fine,” muttered Lloyd with a roll of his eyes. The two began walking towards the right of the building. Red and Sunny went left. They pulled out their phones and used the light from them to see where they were going.   
“So what happened to your insistence that you and I could take on this whole gang by ourselves?”   
Sunny chuckled nervously. “I guess I spoke too quickly back then. These guys really do mean business and I don’t think we ever could handle them by ourselves.” He let out a huff. “Maybe, maybe it’s time for us to learn self defense. Mr. Hughes knows a great karate teacher.”   
“You know what, that might not be such a bad idea. It will at least give us the ability to defend ourselves should the need arise, especially against such big guys like these.”   
Sunny chuckled nervously again. “Yeah, another reason for the deflation of my heroic ideals. Just one of those guys could take us both on.”   
“Yeah, no kidding,” mumbled Red. The two met up with Mr. Hughes and Lloyd at the back of the main building, neither of them having seen a thing.   
“You know, I think Red’s bad feeling is spreading to me,” said Lloyd. “I don’t like this one bit.”   
“As do I,” said Mr. Hughes. He glanced around the area, night now nearly fully descended. He glanced at his phone. “Lloyd, you can mimic an owl hoot, right?”   
“Uh, yeah?”   
“Good.” Mr. Hughes turned to Red and Sunny. “I want you two to head up to the wine storage and look for the Adalante real quick. Lloyd will hoot when we see trouble coming. Sunny, two hoots if the Adalante is there, one if it’s not. Got it?”   
Sunny blinked while quickly bobbing his head. “Got it, but uh, may I ask why we didn’t do this first?”   
“I had hoped that we would be able to stall them by looking for the Adalante. Now, well, change of plans.”   
“But what if, what if they’re already here?” whispered Red, his eyes darting around the area.   
Mr. Hughes smirked. “Then we’ve kept them waiting long enough.”   
“We kept them waiting long enough to split up?” asked Sunny. “Now I want to beat these guys up, but even I know splitting up is a bad idea.”   
“And if they have guns?”   
“Uh . . .”   
“Sometimes, splitting up is a good idea, so if one group is in trouble, the other can come and rescue them instead of having us all get caught.”   
“Ok, when you put it that way, I’m glad I’m with you,” said Lloyd.   
“Of course you are,” muttered Sunny.   
“And if they split up?” asked Red.   
“Oh, good point,” said Sunny, rubbing his chin.   
“Then we'll really have to make sure we stall them as long as possible.”   
Sunny sighed. “So basically the plan is just simply stalling them right now.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded, grinning. “You got it!”   
Lloyd threw up his hands. “Why do we even bother?”   
“Well we should know this by now,” quipped Sunny with a sigh. “We are, after all, working for the most eccentric man in America.” He shrugged.   
Mr. Hughes smirked. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”   
Red scanned the area before glancing up at the wine storage. The fastest way to get up there was the ski lift, and Red figured that would certainly alert anyone here of their presence. He gasped. Something flashed in the window of the wine storage. “I think someone’s up there!” he whispered.   
Mr. Hughes’s face hardened. “If the Adalante is up there, we need to be able to get up there and claim it.”   
“But if all three of them are up there?” asked Sunny.   
“Sunny, we’re going to have to play this out as it goes, the key thing to remember is stalling them for time.” Mr. Hughes nodded at the ski lift. “You need to get going, now.” Red and Sunny glanced at each other uneasily before looking at the ski lift. Mr. Hughes walked towards the control panel and started it up.   
Red let out a breath. “Well, here goes.” He walked towards the lowest lift.   
“Good luck you two,” said Lloyd softly.   
“Thanks,” said Sunny before dashing after Red. The two closed the bar, and Mr. Hughes pushed a couple of buttons, causing the lift to rise.   
“Not quite like flying a plane,” said Sunny with a crooked, nervous smirk.   
Red shot a forced smile in return. “No, not quite.” The rest of the ride was quiet, save for the creaking of the machinery taking them to the top of the hill. Their eyes never left the shape of the wine storage while their hands gripped the bar across their laps tightly. Red tried to slow down his breathing. There was the possibility he had seen the reflection of something else inside the wine storage and it wasn’t something that had caught something shiny the gang members had. His hands tightened even more. Who was he kidding? It was night now, the only thing that could have made that flash was a flashlight. Red glanced at Sunny out of the corner of his eye. They were definitely on their way to meet their adversaries, but would they also meet, or find out, about the ringleader of this lot? Also, was the Adalante even in this wine storage? Red was split, he wanted it to be here so the gang would leave Mr. and Mrs. Steele alone, but he also wanted it to be at their house so the gang wouldn’t get it. Hopefully.   
The two lifted the bar as they neared their stop and leaped nimbly from the chair, landing a couple feet away from the door. The two glanced at each other again before Red took the lead and led Sunny towards the wine storage. Red grabbed a hold of the handle and carefully, slowly opened it. The two peered in, but couldn’t see a thing. It was almost as dark as a cave. Red glanced back. Sunny was barely noticeable under the pale light of the moon, but there was enough light for them to see. Red waved motioned forward and the two stepped into the hut on their toes.   
They had barely gone in a couple of steps before a couple of flashlights clicked on and were shone into their faces, nearly blinding them. Red and Sunny yelped in surprise and covered their faces.   
“Got you!” The voice startled them. It had a slight foreign accent to it, but the English sounded pretty good. They lowered their hands and, blinking, could see the outline of two men holding the flashlights. “Neither one of you move,” said the voice again with a snarl. They finally saw the gun aimed at them and gulped. One of the two men stepped forward and quickly bound their wrists.  
“Who-who are you?” asked Red.  
One of the guys moved his flashlight to illuminate his grinning face. “I’m Hans Hausner, and that’s my brother Hugo.”   
“So you are twins!” blurted Sunny.   
Hans chuckled. “Well, well would you look at that, looks like you’ve got a brain after all!”   
“How do you know Fabrizio Dente?” asked Red.   
Hugo scoffed. “How do we know him? Dude, we work for him. And we hired Charlie and Red to help us.”   
“He sent us here to find the Adalante,” said Hans, waving his flashlight around. “And it’s obviously not here.” Red and Sunny caught quick glimpses of shovels and freshly dug dirt, but no sword.   
“So why did you nearly kill Ettore Russo?” asked Red.   
It was Hans who scoffed this time. “Charlie really got a little too, ah, um, enthusiastic. He and Red were only told to find a way to stall Russo, just not how.” He looked pointedly at Red. “And yes, I know your nickname is Red too. Ironic, huh?”   
Red licked his lips and gulped. “And how, how did you find that out? Heck, how did you find out we were even coming to look for the Adalante ourselves?”   
“Oh come on, it’s not like that cabin is particularly sound-proof,” remarked Hans. “Red went back after the attack and heard every word.”   
“And we didn’t need to hear the whole plan to know that you’re setting us up to get caught,” said Hugo with a snarl. “Which reminds me, start walking.”   
“Well thank you for at least taking the time to clear up a few things,” mumbled Red before their captors pushed them out the door.   
“Our pleasure, figured you would want to know everything before we killed you.” Hugo grabbed Red’s arm and yanked him towards the ski lift.  
“Wh-what? You’re going to kill us? What the heck for?” exclaimed Sunny as Hans pulled him towards the ski lift.   
“You know too much,” replied Hans.   
“Not my fault you gave us the information,” quipped Sunny. He yelped as Hans hit his shoulder with the gun.   
“Hey! Leave him alone!” shouted Red. He gasped in pain as Hugo’s hand squeezed around his arm.   
“Just shut up! We’re on a tight schedule. And now we know for sure where the Adalante is, thank you very much.” Hugo pushed Red onto the lowest ski lift and lowered the bar before quickly getting on himself. Hans pushed Sunny on to the next one before getting on himself. Red’s ears seemed to be throbbing. They were heading to the Steeles’ house and no one would be able to warn them!   
Hans chuckled. “Good ole Charlie!” Red glanced at the bottom of the hill, and his spirits sank. Of course, the third member of the gang had his gun trained on Lloyd but kept a sharp eye on Mr. Hughes as he operated the ski lift. In a couple of minutes, the four had alighted and walked towards the three.   
Charlie waved his gun at Lloyd. “He’s been muttering about where the police are. If we’re going to get out of here before the police arrive, we’d better move!”   
“Don’t worry, we will. We’ll take these two with us and you have these two drive their car. Meet us at Vincent Steele’s house. We’ll take care of the lot there after we’ve gotten the Adalante.”   
Charlie nodded. “Right.” As the Hausner twins pushed Red and Sunny towards a sedan, Charlie waved his gun at Lloyd and Mr. Hughes. “You heard the man, get moving!”   
“Lloyd, I know how Sunny is about the cars, so, will you drive?”   
Lloyd glanced at Mr. Hughes before nodding slowly. “Of course, Mr. Hughes.”   
Mr. Hughes smiled. “Thank you.”   
“Move it!” The two walked towards their car and got in. Charlie got in the passenger seat and aimed his gun at Lloyd. “You know how to get to Steele’s house?”   
“I think so,” said Lloyd.   
“If not I can help with the directions,” said Mr. Hughes.   
“Oh, well, thank you.”   
“No problem.” Mr. Hughes smiled. Lloyd backed the car out of the parking lot and took off. “If you don’t mind my asking,” said Mr. Hughes, “what was the plan for the Adalante, exactly?”   
Charlie shrugged. “Fabrizio wanted us to make a copy of it and inscript a new will to give it all to him.”   
“Was murder really part of the plan, though? I mean, killing one of the most famous men in America doesn’t sound like the best idea. It certainly wouldn’t look good on your records.”   
“We’re going to hold you for ransom. We’re killing the others because we can’t have too many witnesses.” Charlie shot a cruel smile at Mr. Hughes. “To be considered a liar wouldn’t look good on your record to be honest.”   
Mr. Hughes raised an eyebrow. “Really? You seriously think that’s what’s going to happen? Pal, I’ve got way more money than your boss. I can hunt you all down.” Charlie wavered as Mr. Hughes leaned forward in his seat. “Besides, I chose this lot because I like them. There’s no way I’ll let you get away with murder.”   
“Then maybe you shouldn’t have stuck your nose into affairs that weren’t your own,” returned Charlie.   
“Oh, but these affairs are my own. See, Ettore Russo is a dear friend of mine, he’s almost like an older brother, and I want to see good things coming to my dear friends.”   
“Well, second guessing that now, huh?”   
Mr. Hughes chuckled. “Not in the slightest.”   
“You really are eccentric.”   
“You’re just now noticing? Oh, and I’m good at more than just fencing.”   
Charlie blinked. “Wait, what?” Thwap! Mr. Hughes’s hand came down hard on Charlie’s hand, causing him to release the gun as he cried out in pain. Mr. Hughes struck a second time, and Charlie was out cold.   
“And they wonder why you don’t bother hiring any guards,” muttered Lloyd.   
“Oh quite, and I’m thinking it’s about time you all started learning self defense.”   
“Oh, thanks for noticing.” Lloyd gripped the steering wheel a little tighter. “But, what about Red and Sunny right now?”   
Mr. Hughes sat back in his seat. “I only hope we and the police can get there in time. In the meantime, they’re on their own. And I hope they’re alright.”   
“I hope so too.”  
Red and Sunny were alright, but unconscious in the back of the sedan, the mild scent of chloroform hanging in the air above their heads.


	18. Escape from the Dark

Red groaned as he rolled over. His head was throbbing. He licked his lips as he tried to swallow down the parched feeling in his throat. He coughed slightly. He groaned again as he slowly opened his eyes and blinked. Where was he? His bound hands felt an earthen floor as he propped himself up. He waited a moment until his eyes were adjusted to the dark, but it was practically pitch black. A soft groan came from behind him. Red managed to turn himself around and felt around the dark. He felt a warm body and shook it.   
“Sunny? Sunny? Are you alright?”   
Sunny groaned again. “I feel like I got run over by a truck.”   
“What I want to know is, why did they knock us out instead of killing us?”   
“Does it matter? We should be happy to still be alive! Uh, where are we?”   
“That's what I was trying to figure out. You don't happen to have any matches, do you?”   
“Even if I did it wouldn't do us much good. It wouldn't give us enough light.”   
“Just enough to see where we are and if we could find anything to help us get out of here.”   
“Wherever here is.” There was a pause before Sunny whispered, “Red, do you, do you think they left us here to die?”   
Red gulped. He hadn't even thought of that. But the question still remained, why weren't they dead already? “Maybe we can find out by getting out of here.”   
“But how are we going to do that? I can barely see a foot in front of me!” Red felt Sunny grasp his hands, and squeezed.  
“Ow! But you can clearly feel your way around and hurt me!”   
“Sorry,” mumbled Sunny.  
“Sure you are,” grumbled Red.   
“I'm nervous and . . . and scared Red. What happened to Lloyd and Mr. Hughes? Where did they take them?”   
“Let's concentrate on getting out of here first,” said Red. “Can you feel the knot on this rope?”   
“Uh, maybe.”   
“Either a yes or a no, man, no maybes!”   
“What is it with you, dude? Why aren't you scared?”   
Red gritted his teeth. “I am, but I'm more mad than scared right now. I didn't start working for Mr. Hughes just to die now!”   
That got a laugh from Sunny. “Fair point. Then let's work on getting out of here so you can experience just how interesting working for Mr. Hughes can be.”   
“Glad to have you on board, Sunny. And . . . sorry I yelled at you.”   
“Hey, if I need a slap to get myself on track, please slap me.”   
“Oh, good to know. I’ll remember that when you start getting on my nerves too.”   
Sunny gasped. “You wouldn't!”   
“Hey, you just gave me permission!”   
“Then maybe I shouldn't have untied you.”   
Red blinked. “Wait, what?” But it was true, his hands were free. “Alright, way to go Sunny!”   
“Thank you very much. Now untie me!”   
Red chuckled. “On it!” He felt for the knot on Sunny’s bond and began working at it furiously.   
“I wonder if this place even has a lightbulb hanging above us. In a place this dark, there’s got to be some light source somewhere.”   
“That’s what the match was needed for. I don’t think they left our phones,” mumbled Red.   
Sunny groaned. “Ugh, I think you’re right. This just keeps getting worse and worse.”   
“I wish I wasn’t,” muttered Red.   
“Well, we could check to make sure they didn't take our phones with them, or they left them in the general area.”   
“We definitely could, but I wouldn't bet on it.” Red sighed with satisfaction when the rope fell off Sunny’s wrists. “There, done.”   
“Hallelujah! And now I know exactly what they mean in books when they say 'the rope was biting into his wrists’. Ow, that's really going to leave a mark for a while.”   
“No kidding,” muttered Red, rubbing at his wrists. He let out a sigh. “But that was the easy part, now comes the hard part, figuring out how to get out of here.” He grunted as he slowly stood up, feeling around him as he did so. He stood up completely and put his hands up, feeling a low earthen ceiling. “Oooh, be careful when you stand up, Sunny, this ceiling is pretty low. I think we only have a couple feet between our heads and the ceiling.”   
Sunny groaned. “Oh, alright. It had better get better, like . . .” There was a moment of silence followed by a rapid procession of clicks.   
“S-Sunny? Sunny, what’s wrong? Sunny!”   
“Don’t panic on me like that!”   
“Well then don’t stop mid-sentence like that! What happened?”   
“I-I think I found the light switch. It’s one of those chains.”   
“Well, pull on it!”   
“I already did! If you couldn’t tell, it didn’t work.”   
“Ugh, Sunny!”   
“What? Do you have a better idea?”   
“I’m going to feel my way to the wall and see if I can feel for a light switch.”   
“Just don’t take too long.”   
“Don’t have much of a choice as I don’t have much light to see.”   
“Ugh,” mumbled Sunny. “Just hurry it up please, I’m not going to stay here all day holding this.”   
“I’ll go as fast as I can without a light,” retorted Red. “Now please be quiet.” But he managed to get to the wall and found a switch. He flipped it, but nothing came on. “I found the switch and I turned it on. Try pulling the chain again, Sunny.”   
“On it.” With another click, the lightbulb came on with a very dull light. Sunny groaned. “Really?”   
“I’d rather this than get blinded,” said Red. “Besides, it gives us just enough light to see.”   
“But not enough,” grumbled Sunny.The two looked around, the room only had a couple of tables pushed up against the far wall with stacks of papers on those and boxes beneath each. Red was standing between a large wooden door that had thick leather hinges, which he figured was the door out of their prison, and another table with papers stacked high and boxes stacked below. The wall on the left had a full-length safe door with a smaller safe door next to it while the wall on the right had several cork boards up with papers pinned to them.   
Red went to the large door and yanked on it. It didn’t budge. Sunny came over and helped, but it still didn’t budge. The two had to stop, out of breath. “Well, that definitely has to be the way out, and they’ve locked us in,” said Red between breaths.   
“So then, now what?”   
Red glanced around the room and pointed to the tables. “You take that side of the room and I’ll take this side. We’ll look for our phones and anything else that might be useful to us.”   
“Right,” mumbled Sunny. The two went to work in relative silence. Sunny let out a few grunts following a few soft bumps, but otherwise, the only sounds were the pulsing in their ears. Sunny broke the silence after a bit with a whoop. Red was by his side in an instant. “Look at this!” Sunny handed Red a piece of paper. On it was the drawing of a sword.  
Red’s eyes nearly popped out of their sockets when he read one word. “The Adalante! This is a drawing of the Adalante!” It looked then like a traced copy from a book, but it was the Adalante.   
“But how did those creeps get this?”   
Red waved the paper slightly. “Unless, unless Mr. Steele gave it to them!”   
“What? That doesn’t make sense! Mr. Steele is helping us!”   
“Or we’re in Mr. Steele’s basement. That is the last place to look for the Adalante. That must be where we are!”   
“But it still doesn’t make any sense. Why do you think Mr. Steele is in on it?” asked Sunny.   
Red glanced back at the paper. “Well, he has been looking for more information on Giovanni Russo, he’s probably been chasing down every lead he got. As for working with us, well, there are two options. One, he wanted to get close to us to know more information. Or two, he had a change of heart and since he doesn’t actually know the gang’s activities, couldn’t warn us about anything.” Red looked at Sunny. “But you have to admit, every time we’ve given him information about our plans, one of the gang shows up or something happens to us.”   
“I’ll give you that. But that close encounter with the bulldozer guy? How would he have known about that?”   
“Mr. Hughes talked to Mr. Zellers before that, remember? He told him what we were going to do! Plus, he had also called the company manager to get permission for it, and not long afterwards, apparently Mr. Steele called to take a look at it himself.”   
Sunny held up a finger. “Yeah, but one problem, Mr. Mads told us he had been paid by a foreign guy, obviously one of those twins that took us here.”   
Red nodded slowly. “That is true. Mr. Steele still could have contacted them and told them about our plans so we wouldn’t find the Adalante before they do.”   
“But then, if he did change sides, why?”   
Red tapped his chin. “If we are in his basement, maybe we can ask him and find out.”   
Sunny scoffed. “Just one problem, there’s a locked door in our way and the key’s on the other side.”   
Red glanced over the room, and his eyes fell on the safes. “And we have two locked doors in here.”   
Sunny blinked before looking at the safe doors. “Uh, yeah. But, how is that going to work?”   
Red took a step forward, then stopped, letting out a groan and snapping his fingers. “Oh, right. This isn’t a bank. Only a bank would have their safes connected to the police station.”   
Sunny looked at him in shock. “Wait, you think that trying to open one would sound an alarm?”   
Red sighed. “Yeah, kinda dumb, right?”   
“But what if it is? I mean, what’s the harm in trying anyway?”   
Red nodded slowly. “You’re right. And who knows, there still could be something in there to help us.”   
“Right! I call the smaller one!” exclaimed Sunny as he dashed over.   
Red blinked before following. “Wait, do you just want to try your hand at cracking a safe?”   
Sunny shrugged, but was grinning broadly. “Hey man, it always looked fun in the movies.”   
“Yeah, but they’re trying to open the safes without tripping the alarm. We want to trip the alarm so we can get out of here!”   
Sunny sighed. “Fine, fine, you’re right. Alright, alarm, better get here to trip me up!” He cracked his knuckles and wriggled his fingers before spinning the lock.   
Red went to the larger door and raised his hand to the lock when he realized he was still holding on to the piece of paper about the Adalante. He was about to let it drop when something near the hilt caught his eye. He turned the paper. There, nearly intertwined with the hilt, was a set of four numbers. His eyes followed the drawing to the tip of the blade. Another set of four numbers. He glanced at Sunny who began humming while he was twisting and turning the lock like he knew what he was doing trying to unlock it. Red turned back to the paper before looking up at the safe door. Was it the combination? Why would they be somewhat hidden on a piece of paper about the Adalante? Red licked his lips before touching the lock and turning it to the first number. A click. He turned it to each of the other three numbers, each one followed by a click, before the door popped open. Curiosity got the best of him and he opened it, peering inside with what little light he had. There was a bookcase with a few items scattered about on the shelves. His eyes fell on one shelf, and his mouth dropped. There, lying at eye level, was the exact same sword as in the drawing, except the blade was broken in a jagged pattern.   
“The Adalante!” he whispered.   
“Huh?” said Sunny. “Hey! How did you get that open?” He walked over and looked in, his own mouth dropping. “Hey, is that, is that . . .”   
“The Adalante!” said Red, a little louder, showing Sunny the paper.   
“But, but, how come it’s in here? Didn’t Giovanni Russo bury it?”   
“He did, Mr. Steel could have unburied it.” Red gave Sunny a quick glance before turning back to the sword. apparently unburied it. But, how long has it been in here?” Red placed the piece of paper on the shelf before grabbing the sword.   
“Wait, what? You’re not making any sense.”   
“None of this is making any sense, Sunny. We have got to get out of here and get some answers.”   
“Yeah, because and we need to hurry, because I just found another question that needs answering.”   
Red looked at Sunny, blinking in confusion. “What?”   
Sunny pulled out a knife with the same jagged pattern as the sword. “Why does this look like a miniature version of the Adalante?” Red compared the knife and the sword, Sunny was right, except in size, the two looked exactly the same.   
Red gave Sunny a grim look. “It looks like there’s a lot Mr. Steel wasn’t telling us, and I aim to get out of here and find out why.”   
“Yeah, about that, we still have a door between us and the rest of the world.” Sunny pointed to the smaller safe. “And I don't think that's working, ingenious as it was.”   
Red grabbed the drawing off the shelf and looked at the numbers. “Let's go ahead and open it. Maybe there's something in there that could help us.”   
Sunny raised an eyebrow as he glanced at the smaller safe. “Something in there can help us? You're kidding, right?” He held up the knife. “We could use this on those hinges.”   
“That leather looks really thick,” pointed out Red.   
Sunny pointed at the Adalante. “We have that too. I take one, you take the other.”   
Red glanced at the door. “That could work, I guess.”   
“What have we got to lose?”   
“Maybe a couple of fingers,” mumbled Red. “But it's a good idea and it's worth a try.”   
Sunny huffed. “Then let’s get to it.” The two walked quickly towards the door and began sawing carefully at the hinges. They kept at it for who knows how long, but Sunny was the first to let out a shoop. “I’m almost there!”   
“Great! I need just a little more time!”   
The next minute, Sunny had sawed through the top hinge. He threw his hands up and cheered. “Yes!” He looked at Red. “Hurry it up!”  
“Chill man! I’m going as fast as I can!” He paused in his sawing and wiped his brow with his free hand. He glanced at Sunny. “Unless you’d like to take over.”   
“Dude, my arms feel like they’re about to fall off!”   
“Well okay then, let me go at my pace, please,” said Red.   
“Ugh, fine.” Sunny walked to the open safe again while Red finished sawing. It took a couple minutes later, but Red let out a satisfied yet tired laugh when the blade cut through the final strand of leather.   
“Done!”   
“Yes! Let’s get out of here!” Sunny raced back to the door and helped Red open the door slightly inwards. “Only the second time a door has been unlocked without a key!”   
Red glanced at him. “Huh?”   
Sunny blinked. “You’ve never seen Ever After?”   
“No, never heard of it.”   
“Well I know what we’ll be watching once this is all over.” They peeked through the opening. Their way was blocked by a board placed in front of the door. Red picked it up out of its place and gently set down off to the side. The two opened the door even more, careful to make sure it didn’t fall down on them. “I can almost taste the freedom!” Sunny said softly.   
Red grinned. “So can I! This was a great idea.”   
Sunny beamed. “Thanks!” They finally got the door positioned. Then, with the weapons stashed in their belt loops, they tiptoed out of the room into a basement full of more papers and boxes. They were neatly stacked up against the walls with a clear path to the stairs, but it certainly looked like a researcher or a writer worked here, of which Mr. Steele would be both. The two paused at the bottom of the staircase. No sounds drifted down to them.   
“Does that mean they’re gone?” whispered Sunny.   
“Well, let’s head up and find out. And maybe get to the phone while we’re at it.”   
“Good idea,” muttered Sunny. They began tiptoeing up the stairs, but a yell made them pause.   
“Tell us where the Adalante is, or we’ll kill you!”   
“You wouldn’t, because you’re too stupid to do this on your own!”   
“Listen, Mr. Steele, we have our ways. Start talking!”   
Red and Sunny glanced at each other in shock. That sounded foreign. The twins were still here! And they were in Mr. Steele’s basement!


	19. The Adalante to the Rescue!

The two tiptoed all the way to the top, just in time to hear Mr. Steele’s reply.   
“Well then be quiet long enough to listen to me!”   
“You said it could only be in one of three places, the storage in your basement, that storage at Carson’s Lodge, and that storage that was demolished! You checked here and at the demolished site, and we went back to double check Carson’s Lodge. If it’s not at any of those three, then where the heck is it?” Red and Sunny glanced at the sword stashed in Red’s belt before glancing at each other. Mr. Steele lied to the crooks! But, why? Was he on their side? And if they had gone back to Carson’s Lodge to look for the sword, how long had the two been out? And where was the third guy in the gang, Mr. Hughes, and Lloyd?   
“If you’d listen to me! I’m trying to figure this out! Someone else could have moved it! There was a trunk in the demolished storage room, that’s got to be where it had to have been!”   
“But the crew said they didn’t find anything of importance in there. Are you sure there’s nothing in your storage?” said one twin in a low, threatening tone.   
“I’m positive. Don’t you think I would have gone through that storage five times already for the Adalante when I started my research on Giovanni Russo? Because I did! Now, if you could let me think for more than five minutes, I might be able to figure this out!”   
“We don’t have much time!” exclaimed one twin. “Charlie hasn’t shown up with the other two prisoners! They probably took him out and to the police! They could be on their way right now with the police in tow!”   
“Hans, calm down. The man’s got a point, he needs time to think and we’re not exactly helping. Sit down and give him some time.”   
Hans let out a growl. “Fine, but he’d better move it, or he’s joining those two brats in the afterlife!”   
“Th-they’re dead?” asked Mr. Steele in a shaky voice.   
“Not yet, Vincent, and I’m glad they’re not, we could use them as hostages since Charlie isn’t here with the billionaire,” ssid Hugo.   
“You seem awfully fond of those brats,” said Hans in a low, threatening voice.   
“It’s my house, I’m not going to have two dead bodies in my basement!”   
“Well you will have three if you don’t hurry it up and figure this out!”   
“Then be quiet and let me think! I thought time was of the essence, and you’ve just wasted three minutes arguing with me!”   
Red and Sunny got to the doorway separating the kitchen from the living room and very cautiously peeked around the corner. The three men were standing in the living room, glaring at each other. Mr. Steele only had a coffee table between him and the twins. If Mr. Steele was on their side, the three of them might stand a chance against the twins, but if he wasn’t, well, pretty much all bets were off.   
Hans’s hands came down on the coffee table with a reverberating thud, startling Red and Sunny. “Listen, old man . . .”   
“Hans, let him think. It’s what we’re paying him to do,” said Hugo with a snarl.   
“Fine,” grumbled Hans and sat down in one of the chairs. Hugo sat down in another. Both watched Mr. Stelen as he began pacing the room.   
“Now, according to my research, and based on what Mr. Russo was able to reveal to me, before your men nearly killed him,” Mr. Steele shot them a glare, “Giovanni Russo had to have buried his sword with his will in one of those three places.”   
“Then why isn’t in one of those three places?” asked Hugo.   
Mr. Steele sighed. “I’m coming to that, please keep quiet. Now, I don’t have the detective brain that my nephew does, or that Mr. Randall seems to have, so this will take me a little longer to figure out, so just be patient . . . please.” Hugo growled and crossed his arms, but stayed quiet. “Thank you. Now, you’ve checked Carson’s Lodge twice, just in case, which is good. However, the sword was not there. I checked the demolition site, nothing. I checked my own basement multiple times upon moving in, again, nothing.” Red and Sunny shared a look and glanced back at the Adalante in Red’s belt again. Mr. Steele was lying to them. But what was his motive for lying? And could he be trusted to help Red and Sunny take down these crooks?   
“Then the billionaire and his brats have it!” said Hans, jumping up from his chair.   
Mr. Steele held up his finger. “I had thought about that too, but they definitely didn’t.” Red and Sunny glanced yet again at the Adalante before sharing a smirk. They did now.   
“Then what other explanation is there?” Hans just about roared.   
“You heard of the woman that Giovanni Russo fell in love with?”   
The twins glanced at each other. “You mean the dark-haired beauty who ran out on him?” asked Hugo.   
Mr. Steele nodded. “Yes, it’s possible she actually had the sword. That’s what I’ve been waiting on. The granddaughter of Maria told me she promised her mother that she would only tell her story to the relatives of Miguel Jiminez and Giovanni Russo before telling it to the world. That makes me wonder if it has anything to do with the sword.”   
“And she’s telling it to Ettore Russo,” said Hans with a growl.   
“I applaud you for your astute observation,” snapped Mr. Steele. “Pray tell, are there any more obvious observations you have to make?”   
“Why are you letting this go through then?”   
Mr. Steele sighed and rubbed his temples. “My goodness, how else do you expect it to go? The woman was quite insistent on the whole thing. There was nothing I could say to change her mind. I'm the one who was paid to think, clearly not you.” Hans growled, but said nothing.   
“And if she doesn't have it?” asked Hugo.   
“Then we’re back at square one, for both us and Mr. Hughes’s team,” stated Mr. Steele. He eyed Hans. “Which then begs the question, was the hilt ever buried in the first place? Was Giovanni Russo remembering things wrong at the end?”   
“We have got to find it!” exclaimed Hans. “And if we’re going to make a copy of it, we’d better find it soon because we’re running out of time!”   
Mr. Steele crossed his arms. “Well maybe you should have given yourself some more time. Besides, isn’t Ettore Russo still healing from his close encounter with one of your men?”   
Hans snarled. “That’s got nothing to do with it. We don’t have the time.”   
Mr. Steele glanced between them. “Then why is time of the essence?”   
Hugo sighed. “Because Dente has incriminating evidence against us. There’s a trial going on right now about it because they think they nabbed the right guys. We have to find this or else he’ll give the information to the judge.”   
Mr. Steele blinked. “Oh,” he said slowly. “I see, I’m sorry to hear that. I’ll . . .” A knock came at the front door. The three men jumped, as did their two eavesdroppers.   
Hans looked suspiciously at Mr. Steele. “Are you expecting anyone?”   
“No. Aren’t you expecting Charlie?”   
Hugo stood up. “We are, but he should have been here long before now.” Another knock.   
Hans also stood and placed his hand on the hilt of a gun hidden under his jacket. “Go ahead and open it.” Mr. Steele eyed the gun for a moment before giving a curt nod and walking to the door. There was another knock right before he opened it.   
“Hello sir, have you heard about our Lord and Savior?”   
“The end times are coming! You must repent of your sins!”   
“What the?” Hans grabbed the door and swung it wider. Lloyd and Mr. Hughes grinned sheepishly at them. “You! Where’s Charlie?”   
“You really should repent,” said Mr. Hughes.   
Hans pulled out the gun and leveled it at them. “Get in here.” Lloyd's and Mr. Hughes’s hands went up before walking into the house. “Sit down.” The two went and sat on the sofa. “Now spill it. Where’s Charlie?”   
“Even if you took him to the police, it was a real dumb move to come here,” said Hugo.   
Mr. Hughes smiled. “Oh, but it was the logical thing to do, really. You still have two of my men. Where are they? And where’s the Adalante?”   
“Definitely not here!” Hans shouted. “It's nowhere to be found!!”   
“Well, we don’t have it,” said Mr. Hughes with a shrug.   
“As I figured,” said Mr. Steele.   
“But then where could it be?” shouted Hans.   
“Maybe with the help of Mr. Hughes and his servants, we can figure this out,” said Mr. Steele. “But I certainly can’t with you waving that gun around like that. I can’t think when I’m anxious. Why don’t you two go take a walk and we’ll work on the problem?”   
Hans turned the gun on Mr. Steele, then back at Mr. Hughes and Lloyd. “What if they try to leave?”   
“Oh good grief, just walk the perimeter of the house! I’m getting more and more anxious and I thought of that!”   
“Besides, we still want to find the Adalante,” remarked Mr. Hughes, “and since we’re all back at square one, it only makes sense that we work together, at least for now.”   
“Then why didn’t you just come with Charlie?” asked Hans.   
“How was I supposed to know that you hadn’t found the Adalante at all? Otherwise, we would have.”   
“Where is Charlie right now anyways?” asked Hugo.   
Mr. Hughes smirked. “Nice and snug in a jail cell. He’s probably waking up now from that blow I gave him. Speaking of . . .”   
“Wait, this is a trap!” shouted Hans. He turned his gun on Mr. Steele. “And you’re in on it, aren’t you? That’s the real reason why you want us to go outside so the police will nab us!” Red turned and glanced out the kitchen window. Someone was slightly moving around in the back, and it looked like a cop.   
“Where are my other two servants?” asked Mr. Hughes coolly.   
Hans turned the gun back on him. “You’re coming with us. Get up!”   
“Where are Red and Sunny?”   
“I said get up, or I will shoot this one!” Hans pointed the gun at Lloyd. Sunny barrelled into the room and rammed into Hans.   
“Sunny!” called out Lloyd, Red, and Mr. Hughes at the same time. Hans cried out as the gun fell from his hand and went clattering across the room. Lloyd was up in a flash and lunged for it. But so did Hugo, and the two grappled for the weapon. Hugo kicked at Lloyd, making him cry out, but he held on to the gun. Red turned towards the back door and quickly unbolted and opened it. He went back to the living room, just in time to see everyone frozen as Hugo rose, triumphant, with the gun. He aimed it at the people in the room, unaware of Red standing just around the corner.   
“Alright everyone, we are going to stay here and figure out where that hilt is, or I’m going to shoot one of you in the morning!”   
Red pulled out the blade from his belt and held it up high like a knight ready for battle. “Here it is!” everyone glanced at him in surprise. “You want it, come and get it!” He turned and ran towards the door.   
“Hey!” shouted Hugo.   
“Well don’t just stand there! Go get it from him!” shouted Hans as he began struggling against Sunny’s grip. Mr. Steele took a step forward, but Mr. Hughes quickly stood and grabbed his arm.   
Red threw open the door. A shot rang out. Red ducked and yelped as the bullet whizzed by his head and became imbedded in the wall just past the door frame. Red took off running out into the backyard, but came to a skidding halt at the fence as the yard was smaller than he thought. He glanced on either side, but quickly turned around at the sound of Hugo’s voice.   
“You got nowhere to go, kid. Either hand me that sword, or I’ll pry it from your cold fingers.” Hugo put his finger on the trigger.   
Red gulped but both hands gripped the Adalante tighter. “This doesn’t belong to you.”   
“Pry it it is.” Hugo fired. Red shifted the sword and miraculously, the bullet ricocheted off the blade into a nearby bush. Red’s eyes widened. He hoped it didn’t hit one of the cops. As if to put an ease to his mind, an officer did spring up from a bush, but it was the bush by the house and grabbed Hugo’s arm. Another officer leapt out of the other bush and the two tackled Hugo to the ground. It ended with them getting the gun and placing Hugo in handcuffs. Two more officers came around the corners of the house and dashed into the house.   
Red sighed with relief as he leaned back against the fence. He glanced down at the Adalante. It was finally over. There were still a few questions to be answered, but now that the crooks were captured, all but Fabrizio Dente, that is, the final pieces would be put into place and the whole story would come out. Not to mention, how much of it could he tell his family? His siblings would be thrilled to hear that he had been on a treasure hunt, and his parents might be proud of him, but they might think this was too dangerous and call him home. Red set his teeth into a determined line, no, this was where he belonged now, this was where he wanted to be, and he would let them know that. He liked working for Mr. Hughes, even if he was eccentric and hung out with people who were obviously plotting to kill him to get his money. Red wanted to stay around and help foil those plans.   
A scream shattered Red’s thoughts. He glanced at the doorway, startled.   
“Get me an ETA on that ambulance!” came a call from within the house. It wasn’t a voice Red recognised and figured it was one of the officers who went in. One of the officers helped Hugo to his feet and marched him around the house while the other talked into his walkie, getting the ETA from the dispatcher. Red walked towards the door, but the officer grabbed his arm.   
“Sir, it’s best that you don’t go in right now.”   
“B-but, my friends! It could be one of them who’s hurt! Sunny! Lloyd! Mr. Hughes! Mr. Steele!”   
The officer pushed him a little further away from the door. “I understand that, but the ambulance is only seconds away and they’re going to need the room to maneuver, so it’s best if you wait right here. Your friends will have to come this way anyhow.”   
Red gritted his teeth and gulped, but nodded. He glanced back down at the Adalante. Maybe it wasn’t quite over yet, not until the sword was in Signor Russo’s hands. Red couldn’t wait until it was.


	20. In the Lounge With the Knife

Signor Russo fell back in his chair, laughing. “I'm sorry, I really shouldn't laugh, that's gotta hurt, but he stabbed himself!”   
Mr. Hughes, sitting next to him, also laughed. “What's funnier is the look on his face when the cops came in and handcuffed him. So believe me when I say, go ahead and laugh. He’ll be fine. I do believe his pride was hurt more than his leg.”   
“Taken down by a bunch of kids!” said Lloyd, trying to mimic Hans’s foreign accent.   
Sunny whacked him. “Stick to English accents, you do better with those.” The others laughed.   
It had been a week since the Hausner twins were placed in custody. The group had to stay in Sacramento for a few more days until the police got all their stories. They were still there when Roy sent word that Fabrizio Dente was picked up by police at the courthouse, dropping off the evidence for the involvement of the Hausners in the robbery. Roy had sent word to police in Switzerland, where the trial was taking place, about Fabrizio’s involvement in the plan against Signor Russo’s life and they were more than willing to help since the Hausners had been captured.   
But finally the group left Sacramento, with Mr. Steele in tow, and went back to the cabin triumphant heroes and presented Signor Russo with the Adalante. But before he looked for the will, he wanted to know everything that had happened to the group since their departure. As such, after dinner, they convened in the lounge with Dr. Kin, Signor Russo, Josefina Flores, Miguel Jimenez, Roy, and the Richards twins. There they told the story, with Mr. Steele orchestrating the whole thing so they didn’t talk all over each other. Then they finally finished with Sunny and Lloyd trying to talk over each as they both wanted to tell the story of how Hans Hausner stabbed himself in the leg with the replica knife Mr. Steele had made. But that got Red curious. Mr. Steele had not explained why the knife looked so similar to the Adalante. Both were set upon the coffee table in the lounge next to each other, along with a magnifying glass, and did in fact look remarkably similar. Signor Russo noticed Red looking at them before turning to Mr. Steele.   
“May I ask why you created this replica?”   
Mr. Steele glanced down sheepishly. “I, uh, I wanted a replica of it for myself. I mean, that is, if you don’t mind. I know I didn’t ask your permission, but I was also thinking of giving them this blade so that I could give you the real Adalante.”   
“Why didn’t you just come forward with this information in the first place?” asked Roy.   
“Heck, why didn’t you tell us you yourself told those crooks about our coming?” asked Sunny.   
Mr. Steele winced. “Because I didn’t want you to know I had been working with them. Especially once I had found out what they were trying to do to you. I also couldn’t let them know I had switched sides. I was of the understanding that whoever got to the Adalante first would inherit everything. It wasn’t until they brought the boys to my house that I found out that wasn’t the case.”   
“Really?” said Sunny. “Maybe you should go into acting, because you could have fooled me.”   
“Sunny!’ said Sienna, whacking his arm. “That wasn’t nice!”   
Mr. Steele sighed. “Gene often warned me about that. I am what you could call a chameleon, I can practically become whatever they think of me. I often feel like I’m never myself because of it.”   
“That sounds . . . like a rather lonely life,” said Red.   
Mr. Steele shrugged. “I suppose, I mean, I have my wife and my brother and his family, plus Gene, a few others in Hollywood, and, well, now you.”   
Sunny raised an eyebrow. “Wait, you consider us friends now too?”   
“Hey, didn’t you want to meet him?” asked Roy.   
“Well yeah, but not like this!”   
Mr. Steele’s lips curled into a soft smirk. “Sorry to disappoint.”   
Sunny sighed and crossed his arms. “You’d think I’d be expecting it by now considering the people that Mr. Hughes knows. But I guess I was hoping you would be a little different.”   
Red turned to Sunny, flabbergasted. “But he is! He realized his mistake and tried to help without putting himself and his family in danger. He didn’t sell us out, after all.”   
“But he also didn’t try to warn us either, even when he knew we weren’t being eavesdropped on!”   
Mr. Hughes held up his hands. “Alright, alright, no use arguing about it. What’s done is done, both Ettore and I have decided to forgive him and consider him our friend. I would appreciate it if you did the same.” Sunny just humphed. Mr. Hughes shrugged. “It’s okay if you take your time, just understand that we have forgiven him, and while you are in my house, I expect you to treat him with kindness even if you haven’t forgiven him right now. Are we clear?”   
Sunny let out a huff. “Fine.”   
“Thank you,” said Mr. Hughes. He turned to Red. “And thank you for standing up for Mr. Steele.”   
Red smiled nervously. “Um, you’re welcome.”  
Mr. Hughes rubbed his hands together. “Wonderful. Now I think we’re all caught up. Does anything else need to be said or does anyone have any questions?” Mr. Steele slowly raised his hand. Mr. Hughes blinked. “Yes, Vincent, what is it?”   
“I, uh, have a question.”   
“Yes?”   
Mr. Steele glanced at Josefina Flores who was sitting on the other side of Signor Russo. “Um, is there any chance we could get your grandmother’s story?”   
Josefina glanced between Signor Russo and Mir. Jiminez before smiling and nodding. “Alright, I think it’s time now. My grandmother changed her name because she was an undercover gangbuster.” Everyone’s mouths dropped.   
“She, she what?” exclaimed Lloyd.   
“There were undercover gangbusters back in those days?” asked Sunny at the same time.   
“So the whole romance with Miguel Jiminez was just a set-up, to take him and his gang down?” asked Red.   
Josefina burst out laughing. “Yes Sunny, there were gangbusters back in those days. Gangs have been in America for a long time, and gangbusters about as long. And it started that way, Red, but then my grandmother really did begin to fall in love with him.” She nodded at Signor Russo. “And she fell in love with Giovanni Russo as well.”   
“So she did care for both men,” whispered Mr. Steele.   
Josefina nodded. “She did, and that’s another reason why she left town. If she stayed for the battle, she would be duty-bound to help Giovanni take Miguel down, and she didn’t want to do that. Plus, not doing so would also cost her her job as she would be labeled a traitor. She was able to use the pregnancy as a viable excuse to leave the field for a while. She did eventually stop working as a gangbuster not long afterwards.”   
“Wow,” said everyone.   
There was a moment of silence before Mr. Steele cleared his throat. “May I have your permission to reveal this information to the world?”   
Josefina smiled and gave a quick nod of her head. “You may.”   
Mr. Steele fistbumped the air. “Yes!”   
Mr. Hughes stood up. “Alright, if there are any others, speak up now. I want to hurry up and read Ettore the will.” He grinned at Signor Russo. “I think he has other matters he wants to attend to.”   
Signor Russo blinked in confusion at Mr. Hughes. “Now Reginald, whatever do you mean?” Mr. Hughes shot a glance at Josefina Flores before his grin widened upon turning back to Signor Russo. A soft blush came to the older man’s face.   
Mr. Hughes chuckled before turning to everyone in the room again. “So, one last time, any other questions?”   
“I do have one final question,” said Mr. Steele.   
“Yes Vincent?”   
Mr. Steele turned to Signor Russo. “May I keep the knife replica?”   
Signor Russo held up a forefinger. “On one condition, you create a second one just like this to give to Reginald Hughes as a souvenir of this adventure. And as a thank you for finding the Adalante for me.” Tears sprung to Signor Russo’s eyes as he glanced at each person in the room and his voice cracked. “Thank you, all of you, for this. I can’t properly tell you how grateful I am, except just, thank you.”   
Mr. Hughes patted his back. “Then hurry up and get better so you can start teaching my fine servants how to fence as well.”   
“But you said we were going to learn self-defence!” said Lloyd.   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “I did, and I know just the perfect sensei for the job.” He grinned. “You will be learning karate for the next few months, so you’d better get ready for a grueling regime.”   
Red beamed. He knew a few Japanese-descent classmates and the culture of Japan as well as his grandparents’ country of Mongolia fascinated him. This was going to be awesome! And if he could have known then what dangers laid ahead, he might have curbed his excitement a little bit.   
Sunny nudged him. “Guess we have a back-to-back feature to watch! First one involves the greatest fencing match in cinema history, the other being the biggest karate movie of all time! It’s sure to get us ready!”   
Red chuckled. “Sounds like fun!”  
“Alright, if there isn’t anything else, then I’m going to find and present the will to Ettore.” There was silence. Mr. Hughes smiled. “Great! Let’s get to it!” He walked to the table and picked up the blade and the magnifying glass. He looked closely at the hilt. The magnifying glass traveled across the edge where the hilt connected to the blade before going slowly over every detail on the hilt. The others watched with nervous excitement, an excitement that began to fall the more Mr. Hughes's forehead creased in bewilderment.   
“Are you not seeing it?” asked Signor Russo. “Grandfather said the hilt specifically.”   
Mr. Hughes looked at Signor Russo. “I know, but I'm not seeing anything.”   
“I think the leather comes off. I didn't want to try it though,” said Mr. Steele.   
Mr. Hughes glanced at Signor Russo. He nodded. “Take it off.”   
Mr. Hughes nodded. “Here goes nothing.” He placed the magnifying glass down and ran his fingers across the edge. He pried off the leather overlay. The bare hilt looked, well, bare. Mr. Hughes placed the leather down and picked up the magnifying glass again. He looked over the whole hilt once again with the same attention to detail. He sighed as he stood up straight and shook his head. He rubbed his eyes and pinched his nose. “It's not there either.” Red stood up and strode to the table. He picked up the blade and scrutinized the hilt.  
“B-but that doesn't make any sense,” stuttered Signor Russo. “Grandfather said the hilt specifically!”   
Mr. Hughes shrugged. “It's not there.”   
Red put down the sword. “He’s right.”   
Signor Russo sat back, blinking. “That, that just doesn't make sense.”   
“But it's true.” Mr. Hughes shrugged and sighed. “I’m sorry, I don't know what else to say, Ettore.”   
Signor Russo chuckled softly, a chuckle that ended with a sigh. “That maybe it wasn’t worth all this and you could have let Fabrizio have it?”   
Mr. Hughes shook his head firmly. “No, this is still your grandfather’s sword, and it should be yours. It was worth it, Ettore, because you are worth it.”   
Tears filled Signor Russo’s eyes. “Thank, thank you, Reginald, thank you. Thank you, to all of you! Even though the will wasn’t found, I think I found an even greater treasure, a group of wonderful friends!” He turned to Josefina and patted her hand. “And meeting such great new people too.”   
She patted his hand in return. “I’m glad we’ve met too. I just wish it was under better circumstances.”   
“Things will get better, I have no doubt about it.”   
Red frowned as the conversation continued, something wasn’t right. Giovanni had to have left his will on the hilt, especially since Fabrizio was going through all this trouble to cheat his cousin out of his inheritance. He glanced at the hilt again. But it wasn’t there. He turned to the leather. He had never seen the leather come off, though, and picked up for a closer look. It felt tough yet soft. The designs carved into the leather were rather exquisite. It was mainly of grapes and vines, but Red liked how they felt under his fingers. Curious as to what the back looked like, he turned it over. He paused. Was he seeing things? He blinked, looking at Mr. Hughes before turning back to the leather. He was definitely not seeing things. He yelped. “Mr. Hughes!”   
Mr. Hughes went to his side immediately. “What is it, Red? What’s wrong?”   
Red grinned as he showed him the backside of the leather. “Giovanni did write a will on the hilt, on the backside of the leather!”   
Mr. Hughes whooped before taking the leather from Red. “You found it, great job!” He read the will out loud. According to the specifics of the will, Giovanni left three quarters of his estate to his eldest grandson, the rest would be split among the other grandchildren.   
Josefina clapped her hands. “This is fantastic!”   
Sunny and Lloyd tackled Red. “You little sneak!” exclaimed Sunny.   
“I’m not the little sneak, Giovanni Russo just put it in the best place where he thought his family would find it, no one else.”   
“Still, you found it!” said Lloyd, giving him a noogie. “I’d say you’ve really become an irreplaceable member of Mr. Hughes’s workforce!”   
“You mean I wasn’t before?” Lloyd whacked his shoulder. “Ow!”   
“You know what I mean,” said Lloyd.   
Mr. Hughes chuckled. “Point is, I am super glad I hired you, Red.”   
Signor Russo smiled at Red. “So do I.”   
Mr. Steele nodded. “I think we’re all in agreement there.”   
Red glanced around the room, beaming. Yes, he had chosen well by accepting Mr. Hughes’ offer of work. Yes, there were sure to be more dangers ahead, some just around the corner, in fact, but he had found his place, and he felt very lucky. He looked at Mr. Hughes. “So am I.”


End file.
